


Danger Close

by HWIAP



Category: Homestuck
Genre: Detectivestuck, F/M, Humanstuck, I AM SO SORRY FOR DELETING THIS YOU GUYS, I FEEL SO BAD ABOUT IT, ahhhh, god i feel dumb
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-26
Updated: 2016-01-08
Packaged: 2018-05-09 14:57:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 19
Words: 69,854
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5544239
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HWIAP/pseuds/HWIAP
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In which Karkat is a Sheriff and Terezi's a blind PI. They have to work on a serial killer case together, using whatever they can.</p><p>Also includes the help of the sassy tech genius Sollux Captor.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Terezi Pyrope was not happy. She was really not happy. And she didn’t bother to try and hide it, either. Why was she unhappy? Because there were cops swarming her latest case and tainting the scent of everything. So as she walked through the police station – no one even tried to stop her, they gave up on that a while ago – she made sure to tap her cane along the floor as obnoxiously as possible.

Hopefully the Sheriff would understand that she wasn’t pleased with his men and she was coming to complain to him about it. When she gets to the door she stops, takes a breath, then whacks it repeatedly with her cane, shouting out, “Vantas! Open this door, you have some explaining to do!”

And then she quickly covers up her annoyance, her face blank and emotionless – her typical professional look. She wasn’t going to give the angry ball of fury and hatred the pleasure of her being disheveled and upset.

Karkat Vantas had in fact heard her, his first response to the banging being a groan. He didn’t know why she was here, he just wanted her to go away. With another groan and a roll of his eyes, he opens the door to glare at the blind PI. Well, she certainly didn’t seem happy. It was obvious she was trying to hide it, though.

Great. “How did you get in here, Pyrope?! I thought I told them to keep nosy PIs OUT.” He’s pretty pissed off, too.

But that’s just how he always is.

Immediately she’s got that wide grin that she knows pisses him off. Unnaturally sharp teeth and everything. And to add to it, she taps along his legs with her cane. “I’m the best there is, Vantas! Of course I’ll find a way in!” Okay, so it was more like the other officers had just given up on stopping her, but those were just little details.”Now, I want your goons out of my crime scene and off my case! They’re messing it all up!” Her grin falters for a moment, her cane connecting rather harshly with his knee.

No, bad Pyrope, calm down. She clenches her cane tightly, forcing herself to relax more, her grin more forced than before.

Karkat wasn’t amused by her shenanigans, rubbing his knee and glaring at her. “Who the fuck said it was YOUR case?! I’ll do as I damn well like and no blind girl is going to tell me how to do my job differently!” He didn’t even know what case she was talking about, but based on past experiences he didn’t really need to know. Her ‘cases’ often clashed with the work of the actual cops and she was always getting in his face about it.

That was about what their relationship was, and he did not enjoy it. Especially because she always seemed to get off on his pain and anger. “What do you even mean by ‘they’re messing it up’?! You’d probably just sit there and lick the damn thing anyways! I’m not changing SHIT, Pyrope!”

He was probably the only one in the station to know about her little disability. How did he know? He’s seen her eyes. Her glasses were terrifying enough – Who the hell wore pointed sunglasses with red lenses? – but her eyes were even freakier. They explained why her shades were red, though.

He’s brought back to the situation on hand when she gives his leg another whack, her other hand removing a file from seemingly nowhere. Terezi prided herself on having lots of different places to hide things, just in case it was ever necessary. Such as whipping a portion of a case file out while drubbing the Sheriff. You know, the important things.

“This says that it’s my case. I was hired specifically to do the job, and I won’t let any kind of so-called cop interfere with the way I do things.” Maybe she was a little too hostile towards them, but she couldn’t exactly help it. If they wouldn’t let her join the force because of a disability most people didn’t even know she had, then they could deal with her working on her own cases in her own way.

Her playfulness is gone – it was strained in the first place – and she gives his side a whack. Enough to sting, but not to actually leave any kind of bruise. Assaulting an officer wasn’t something she wanted on her record. “Move your boys or I’ll do it myself.”

With an annoyed growl, he tries to grab the cane, wanting it out of her grip. “Well THIS is assault, WE were called to the scene of the crime, and I’M not letting you mess this shit up without some sort of assistance from the force to make sure you don’t COMPLETELY MESS EVERYTHING UP.”

His face was beet red at this point, already fed up with her even though it’s only been a minute or two. He was always quick to anger, but this girl just knew EXACTLY what pissed him off. Her grin is back, a little more sadistic than before, and she easily pulls her cane back to her. No way was she letting him get it.

“What, will you charge me? Besides, I have never once messed up on a case. If this one gets fucked up, it’s on you. Do you know how many times I’ve been commissioned for a case that you badge boys couldn’t figure out?”

“And do you know how many times I’ve been given shit by my superiors for letting a nosy little investigator do my job for me?!” His hostility was draining, slowly coming to realize there was no way he was winning this.

Sensing him slowly giving in, she grinned some more, allowing herself to feel victorious.

And then it turned into something filled with a fake kind of sweetness, the kind that she would always send to criminals when she knew she had them. “Then maybe if you did a better job, you wouldn’t have a ‘nosy little investigator’ doing your job for you.” She gave his arm a gentle papping with her cane. It wasn’t that she was trying to make it up to him for her earlier abuse. Oh no, she was just trying to make him think that. “So does that mean you’ll tell your men to back off?”

“On one condition, Pyrope.” Karkat grins this time; she wasn’t going to let her get away with things that easily. Her eyes narrowed for a second, not liking where this was going. Karkat Vantas, grinning? That couldn’t be a good sign.

Especially since it just smelled so unnatural on him. Grumpiness and anger suit him much better. But she forces herself to straighten out and put on the sweetness and sugar again, not willing to bow down to him. That wasn’t something Pyropes did. “And what’s that, Vantas?” Her voice has the same faked sweetness as her smile, but she doubts he’ll notice. He doesn’t seem to notice much, actually. Not unless it’s really obvious.

“If you’re not letting THEM in on this, you’re at least letting ME in. You better fucking appreciate I’m taking time out of my own busy schedule to help with this case.” She doubted he was very busy. He certainly didn’t seem the type to be busy.

But she had an idea. A way to at least get that grin off his face. A way to put him back in his place, so to speak. Her grin creeped back, slowly widening, and she leaned towards him on her cane. “Aw, does the Sheriff want to get closer to the nosy PI? How cute, he’s too shy to even ask her on a date!” And then she lets loose a cackle, straightening out just so she can tap his legs with her cane. “Fine, but you’re following my rules on this. Got that, Vantas?”

Karkat seemed completely shocked by this; his face went red and he took an involuntary step back. Or was it voluntary? No, definitely involuntary. As much as he was terrified of her and her insanity, he wasn’t one to back down. “Shut up, okay?!” Oh yes, Terezi was very much pleased with this reaction. “It’s my job to make sure you don’t completely fuck shut up here, it’s nothing more and never WILL be.”

He’s been telling himself that for a while now. For the past few months he’s found his thoughts wandering to the psychopathic blind PI that felt the urge to just stomp all over him whenever one of their cases collided. There was no way he was developing a crush on the one person that annoyed him more than himself. Nope. No way.  
To take out some of his anger, he kicks at the cane, muttering curses under his breath.

He hated her cane, and she knew it. She took pleasure in annoying the fuck out of him with it, they both knew that. Karkat adds the cane to the mental list of things he hated, which he had lovingly named the Shit List.

Inanimate object or not, it was on the Shit List.

Terezi’s been taking pleasure in his obvious frustration and anger, cackling away. “Now, now, angry little Vantas. No need to be so violent about your denial.” She calms down, just grinning at him now. To keep her cane from getting kicked from her grip, she pulls it back towards her, keeping it close. She takes a few seconds of silence – Karkat’s too busy seething and muttering to notice the quiet – to take in the delicious red of his face.

“Maybe if you’d stop being such a grump I may actually fall for you.”

Karkat decided it would be a very good idea to ignore that.

“Are you going to fill me in on what happened or not, Pyrope?!” Okay, so he was still pretty pissed and angry, having issues with calming himself down.

He’s always had issues with that.

She never made it any easier, either.

“Hehehe, calm down and I may.” She pauses, debating, then adds, “Karkles,” with a wide grin. She had come up with this name when their first run-in happened – a rather simple kidnapping case, almost right after she started being a private investigator. Since then, she’d use it on a rare occasion when he would piss her off or when she just wanted to smell that delicious red she brought out.

His teeth grit together, hard enough to make his jaw ache. He has never been a fan of the nickname. He thought the nickname was a piece of shit and deserved to be with the cane on the Shit List. The thing was stupid and it made him sound like a little fucking kid. “Hurry up already, I’m not waiting much longer, and that’s Officer Vantas to you!” Or even KARKAT. My name is NOT Karkles. Get your shit right.”

As she laughs – okay, cackles, it’s a definite cackle, there’s no way there’s anything that can be other than a cackle – she pulls out the other file for the case. From the same hidden area as before. Karkat wonders for just a moment where the hell she can hide those things on such a fucking skinny frame, but he quickly loses interest. It’s Terezi.

“Calm your shit, Karkles. Or should I call you partner now?” She sends him a grin, taking her sweet time with this on purpose. He was quick to lose patience and she loved to just make his blood boil. It wasn’t really anything against him, it was just amusing. And in her profession, she’ll take any kind of amusement she can get. It was fun and interesting and all, but sometimes... Sometimes she wondered what was underneath that hateful exterior.

But those ‘sometimes’ never really lasted too long. Especially when he would say things like, “I don’t care. Go ahead. It’d be better than fucking KARKLES.” Whenever things like that happened, she’d immediately lose interest in knowing the deeper side of him.

Karkat was tempted to snatch the file from her and read it himself, but he knew that would just be playing into her hands. Mainly because he didn’t want to get whacked with that fucking cane again. He sent the piece of shit a glare. If it had a face he was sure it’d be glaring right back.

“Karkles it is!” That grin was always creepy. Sometimes Karkat thought she forced it to be that terrifying. But then he realized it was Terezi fucking Pyrope. She doesn’t have to be terrifying, she just is. And those canines of hers looked like something he would want to avoid. She made a show of opening the case file, even though it was pretty much useless because not only did she have the entire thing memorized, she was blind. As in, unable to read it. But that doesn’t mean she wasn’t able to sniff the ink off the page and know what it said.

“Female, Asian, early twenties, around twenty-three. She was found stabbed in the chest once-“ She stops talking to touch a place just above her heart, indicating where the stab was, “-and in the stomach once.” Her hand goes to tap a spot just above her belly button. “It’s obvious the killer wanted her to suffer, but not for too long. The cause of death was massive blood loss. She was found a few hours after death by a neighbor a floor above her. He says he’s a close friend, and that they were supposed to be going somewhere. He didn’t specify whether it was a date or not. The girl’s father has been notified, but he says he apparently cannot come down for two weeks. That’s not nearly soon enough to help us with anything. And that’s about all the info we’ve got right now. No prints, no evidence, no videos. The apartment has a security tape of the lobby, but so many visitors come and go it’d be nearly impossible to pick out the killer, but they’re still sending me the video for the timeframe.”

Terezi’s demeanor changes as she talks, going from a giddy and overly grinning little kid to an adult who knows play time’s over and in the past. She’s straightened out and looking down at the file, her grin gone, not even leaving a ghost or a trace of its previous existence.

She’s determined to solve this case, cop interference or not.

This kind of change was always a shock to Karkat, but he’s started to get at least a little used to it. But it was a good kind of change. “Fucking... lovely. Last week there was another crime like this, I don’t know if someone told you about it. This may be a serial killer case in the making on our hands, and if it is, this guy’s gonna strike again and we need to figure out WHEN he’s going to do this before he DOES.”

They weren’t little kids fucking around in the playground, this was serious shit. No more cat and mouse. And Karkat was planning on shoving this case’s face into the ground and laughing at it’s defeat.

Okay.

So maybe he wasn’t going to do that.

But it made him feel better to think about.

Terezi wasn’t as one-minded as Karkat was about this. She was currently fighting between a grin and a frown. She’s never had a serial killer case before – hell, she’s only had a few murders, and most of those turned out to be abductions made to seem like murders – and that was exhilarating. But then it was also a serial killer. Someone who kills for fun or just because they can. Kind of a really dangerous person.

“No, I was never told.” The grin wins out, and it feels unnatural. It even looks unnatural. At least to Karkat, he’s so used to her grin. Her fingers drum along the head of her cane and she asks, “What was this other case? I need every detail possible.”

If she could, she’d be looking him dead in the eyes.

But she settles on (hopefully) keeping her blind and dead eyes on his. Even though he probably couldn’t tell because of her red-lensed shades. She will never not think she has the most badass glasses in existence.

Unfortunately for her, she was looking at Karkat’s neck. And it took him a while to realize exactly why she was looking there. Sometimes he forgot she was blind. Actually, he forgot a lot. “Uh, Pyrope?” Without really thinking it through, he slowly reached his hand out to gently tilt her head up, one finger on the underside of her chin. Okay, now she was at least looking in the right general area. 

And now he can continue, not noticing the slight blushing from Terezi at the odd and unfamiliar touch. “It was the same scenario a couple days back – three, actually. Woman in her twenties got the shit stabbed out of her. Same places you mentioned, too. There was no note or evidence. She worked in the management department of a real nice hotel, except listen to this: for such a nice job she had pretty shitty living arrangements. Crappy little apartment on the complete opposite side of town as this other girl’s place. Literally, I mean complete opposite. You could fucking draw a straight line between the places. This was either a coincidence or the guy’s a God damn OCD symmetry freak.” Being the skeptic about everything that he was, he didn’t believe in coincidences.

She only barely manages to catch what he was saying, too busy berating herself for already losing her touch. So before she responds to the facts about the previous case, she pats her hands from his shoulders up, to get a better picture at about what his height was. “Damnit, when did you grow? You were shorter last I remembered.” She’s grumbling, a little put-off by such a late growth.

That was really going to mess with her. “I guess I’ve just reached a mid-life growth spurt or some shit like that.” He’s grinning, feeling just a little bit of pride at throwing her off. For once she actually seemed like a real blind person.

It was slightly weird. 

But she had heard the change in his voice, so she pat and felt around his face until her fingers came across the grin. “Hehehe, apparently Karkles can smile.” And then she was back to professional, her fingers still exploring his features. It was a blind thing. “But shitty apartment may suggest that her money was going somewhere else. Drugs? Abusive boyfriend who demanded money? Perhaps a relative in need? And there’s ethnicity as well… If she wasn’t Asian, then the only connection is the straight line, female, and early twenties. Go grab that girl’s file real quick, then we’ll head to my office. I’ve got a few things sorted out for the more recent case. We may be able to find a connection.”

Karkat was having a few issues with not flinching away from her cold hands and weird touching. Blind. Gotta at least let her have some freedom. “I’m not sure about ethnicity, I didn’t ask too many questions, it was a different officer’s problem, but I know where the file is. I’ll go grab it.”

“Well, go on. Go get it!” She pulls her hands away, at least partially done with ‘seeing’ his face, and taps his leg. It was light, a little on the playful side. “I’ll be waiting here. I promise I won’t go through your office.” She grins wide, the smile gaining its usual sharpness and edge.

He just rolls his eyes, not even bothering to try and get rid of the cane. “Yeah, sure. Because I believe that. Just try not to fuck up my shit too bad while you’re rummaging through it.” With that, Karkat left the room, silently cursing himself for actually looking forward to a little alone time with the blind PI.

Terezi’s grin just widens more and she immediately slips into his office. She wasn’t planning on looking through any of his boring stuff – who would want to? – she just wanted to mess shit up. So while he was gone, she busied herself with pulling things out of their places and swapping things in files.

Then she sat herself down on his desk, cross-legged and grinning proudly.

When he came back, Karkat’s first reaction was to twitch.

Fuck. This was going to take time to fix.

But instead of ranting, like he usually would’ve, he just dropped the file onto her lap. “There, happy? Now are we going? Can we get food? Jesus FUCK I’m hungry.”  
She keeps her grin as innocent as possible, doing her best to not burst into laughter. But her grin lost any traces of innocence when he mentioned the food, turning into a mischievous child’s grin. “Hehehe, so I was right! This is just some kind of ploy to get me on a date! Wow, Karkles, aren’t you good with the ladies?” With a short cackle, she plucks the file from her lap and jumps off his desk, tucking it under her arm. “Well, alright then. I’m hungry, too. While you’re driving us to wherever for food, I’ll sniff this over.”

“Wha- It doesn’t- I don’t-“ He just gave up and sighed, knowing she wasn’t going to listen to him. Face flushed red at the thought of going on a date with her, he gestured out the door, still holding it open. “Hurry up already.”

With another laugh, she steps past him, swiping her tongue up his cheek. “Hehehe, tastes like I got the Sheriff to blush!” As she heads to the exit, she makes sure to obnoxiously tap her cane against anything she can reach. “Come along, Karkles!”

“Could you quit licking me?! It’s weird, and do you even fucking need that thing?” He followed her, continuing to bitch and whine, not caring that she wasn’t listening. Why was he even looking forward to this? Today was never going to end. He could tell by the grin she was sending him.

“No, I won’t stop licking you. And yes, I need it, I’m blind. Now get that ass of yours into your car and take me to get some food.” And with that, she gave his backside a light tap with her cane, still grinning wide. Oh yes, she was going to enjoy this partnership, she could already tell.

So long as things went well with the case.


	2. Chapter 2

His response is just a simple glare, shouting, “Stop hitting me with it, too! It isn’t fucking funny!” But he gets into his car anyways. If she left a dent in his car with that cane, it was gone. No more cane. Because he loved this car.

Just to show off how much he loved it and how totally GREAT it was, he honked the horn. That and he just wanted to see her reaction. This could definitely be used against annoying Pyropes. Yes. Good defense. Very good defense.

She so wasn’t going to buy it.

And she definitely didn’t seem too fazed by it, either. But what he didn’t know was that he had pretty thoroughly freaked her out. Her grip on the cane tightened and each muscle stiffened, but she refused to show how much he startled her.

No way was she going to let him know how much she hated loud and sudden noises.

So instead of saying anything about it, she casually slips into the passenger seat and buckles up. “Onwards, to our ‘not a date’!” She grins wide at him, prods his arm just to mess with him (and maybe get back at him a little for that damned car horn), then buries her nose in the file. Once she was in the zone, pretty much nothing could bother her.

“Wait, you’re wearing a seat-belt?!” He was staring at her, making a face. “Those are for wusses. We’re ON THE JOB. We need to be able to jump out and kick some ass at any minute, you can’t wear a SEATBELT.”

Nothing except loud Karkats going on about… Seatbelts? Coming back to reality at his shouting, she raises an eyebrow at him. The Sheriff. Sheriff being the keyword in that. And he was telling her to not wear a seatbelt. “We’re just grabbing some food before going to my apartment. Besides, it’s the law, Mr. Sheriff. So on the job or not, unless we’re heading to some kind of shooting, I’m buckling up.” She decides to end this with sticking out her tongue like the totally matured PI she is.

He just grumbles and starts up the car, not even bothering with responding to that. “Can we just get drive through or something? I don’t want to waste anymore time than we have to here.”

“Aw, but Karrrrklesssss! That’s such a shiiiiitty date!” She whines at him, then grins. Oh yes, she was definitely going to enjoy this.  
“You know WHAT?! I GIVE UP. What did YOU have in mind then?! And it’s NOT. A DATE.” Karkat clenched his hands on the steering wheel and grit his teeth, getting thoroughly fed up with her. His face was red again, but this time it was frustration and not embarrassment.

Angering him was always was too easy, he had an incredibly short fuse. Pretty much anything deserved to be yelled at, according to him.

“Hehehe, chill, Karkles. I’m just messing with you. Fast food sounds goods. I’ve gotta get up to date on this case, anyways.” She taps the file sitting on her lap, grin a little less mischievous and sharp. “Now quit being all adorable and red! It makes me wanna piss you off more.” The sharpness and edge is back to the grin, and her lips just stretch further. She wasn’t kidding, either.

While most people would get angry back at him or just plain exasperated, Terezi Pyrope found it to be one of the most adorable things in the world.

At this point, Karkat had pretty much decided they were doing fast food anyways, and was already pulling into the drive through. “Just order or something.” He had calmed down, but was still pretty stiff and tense. But there was no way he was going to let her get her sick pleasure from him. Nope.

“I’ll take whatever, just shush. I’m reading.” Her face is back in the file, her nose working in overdrive and a look of deep concentration set on her face. She had gone back into her little world, ignoring anything outside of the file and absorbing as much as she could from inside it.

Once again, Karkat felt a small tug on his face. Specifically the lip region. She was pretty cute when she was that concentrated. He wasn’t even going to bother trying to deny it.

Instead of trying to come up with something fantastical, he just ordered a fuckton of chicken nuggets. Nobody could go wrong with chicken nuggets. There was no way she was going to be able to yell at him for chicken nuggets.

The nuggets made him invincible and yell-at-proof.

He decided to focus on the rest of the order and got a few sodas, not even bothering with thinking about what kinds she may or may not want. He also made sure to pay. Because what kind of shitty date would this be if he didn’t pay for it?

A pretty terrible shitty date. That’s what.

With the new food in the car and the aroma pretty much filling the entire thing, Terezi finds her nose straying from the file to sniff longingly at the air. Whenever this happens, she shakes her head and goes back to the file, determined to take in as much as she could.

God damnit, that was her stomach. Come on, Pyrope, ignore it and just go on with- Oh hey look. “Ethnicity isn’t an issue, because this woman was Caucasian. But around the same age.” Okay, so that was a bit of an issue. Because that wasn’t a connection. And they seriously needed a connection.

Karkat had parked the car a while ago, wondering when she was going to realize. But when he heard her stomach growl, he wasted no time in shoving a nugget into her mouth while she was talking. “We’ve been at your place for a few minutes now you know.” The drive from the drive through to her apartment hadn’t been that long, they were pretty close. “Are you going to come enjoy your shitty excuse for a date or what?! Bring the file. You can catch me up on it AFTER we make sure you don’t starve to death.”

Terezi just blinks, blushing more than she wants and more than she would admit. Did he just…? She takes a moment to clear her head, then tries to respond. Right. Food. She quickly eats it, practically swallowing the nuggets whole in her embarrassment. “Right. Sorry. I tend to forget about food.” She pops another three into her mouth, sliding out of the car. “Thish guy ish really in’eresh’ing.” Swallow, Pyrope.

And ignore the date thing. She really hadn’t expected that to come back and bite her in the ass. Damnit.

“So what’s he killing for? Any similarities in living arrangements? Jobs? Relationships?” Karkat found himself feeling pretty smug about getting her to blush. He didn’t even bother with trying to hide it, either. Shit man, he was on a roll today.

He had to remind himself to NOT blow it by doing a flying cartwheel out of his current ‘smooth as fuck police-officer’ mode. Maybe that’d be better achieved by actually paying attention and not letting himself get absorbed by his win.

“Both were, according to all sources, single, but this first woman… Her friends said they were worried. Apparently she had been acting odd for a while, and her apartment was only a few months old, too. Both had pretty high-end jobs, but the second had much better living arrangements. Though it’s obvious she could have afforded better. Personal life wise, I can’t seem to find a connection between the two…” She takes a break by grabbing a few more nuggets. Those are pretty much swallowed whole as well in her attempt to get some food into her stomach.

When was the last time she ate? She really had to keep better track of that. Fainting on the job was generally frowned upon.

“Then of course there’s the whole deal with the stab marks.” Right, okay, focus Pyrope. Listen to him, no matter how grating his voice can be. “I’m still waiting for the autopsy on victim number two to come in but unfortunately our only DECENT autopsy… ist… or whatever the hell they’re called has been out so we’re stuck with a group of incompetent baboons given a dead body and told to poke it with sharp objects. Basically we’re probably not getting results on that shit until our other girl gets back from her little unannounced vacation. Maybe we COULD have gotten one of the officers to take a quick look if a nosey little PI who had been sniffing around the crime scene had let any of my damn officers get near the dead body to BEGIN with.” He was sipping his soda casually, as if he hadn’t just accused her of being a major player in them not being able to find anything.

She was busy eating more chicken nuggets, only half listening and completely tuning him out when he started to get all pissy about her. “Geezus fuck Terezi, forget to eat again or some shit like that?” His eyebrow was raised, part of him wondering how she could eat that fast and NOT choke. Another part was trying to fight back the concern that managed to slip into his voice.

“Hey! I was doing my job! Unlike you doughnut lovers, I actually have to solve cases to get money. You guys just sit on your butts all day.” She pops a few more nuggets, taking a sip of her soda. Well, at least it wasn’t diet. If it was a diet soda, somebody would be dead. “And yes, I did. You know I always do that whenever it comes to a case.” She glances over at him, flashing a grin. “Why? Does someone happen to care?”

“Now you’re just throwing stereotypes at me. Doughnuts taste like shit! And actually we have a lot of really badass take-down missions!” He took a few of the nuggets and decided to drown them in barbecue sauce before popping them into his mouth. “Well you should at least make an EFFORT to remember to eat something so I don’t have to keep buying you food all the damn time!”

He chose to ignore her last remark, deciding to just stretch out and- Wait. Have they just been standing here eating in the parking lot the entire damn time?

“Hey, are we going inside or what? It’s freezing out here.”

“Hehehe, what? Can’t take a little cold?” Terezi nudges him playfully, giggling to herself before leading him up to her apartment/office. She had enough money to move her office somewhere proper, like an actual office space, but she was just too lazy. This was close and cozy and that’s all that mattered. She grabs the door, holding it wide and grinning at him. “Babies first.”

“It’s not that I can’t DEAL with the cold, it’s that I don’t LIKE it.” He continues to grumble about how he isn’t a baby and that he can deal with cold situations, shuffling inside and looking around.

“Yes, of course.” She follows him in, grinning wide. “Just put the food on the table. I’ll be right back, I gotta grab the second victim’s file from my office.” She shuts the door and makes sure it’s locked before going to her ‘office’. It’s really just a side room, cluttered with files lying about messily. It only takes her a second to grab the right one, heading back over to him, lazily waving it. “See what you can find.” She holds the file out for him, pretty much challenging him.

In the time it took her to go get the file, Karkat had seated himself at a fairly messy table, staring at what part of her office he could see. “How do you even find shit in here?! It’s like you don’t even TRY to stay organized.” He didn’t really care all that much, he was really just complaining for the sake of complaining.

To shut himself up before she went after him, he snatched the file and began to read.

But of course that doesn’t work.

“I’m blind, genius. I can’t exactly keep organized. Besides, each of these files has a distinct scent.” She walks back over to him, leaving her office the way it was, and pats his head. He chooses to ignore that, not wanting to give her something to get off on. “Hehehe, thank you for the food, though! But really, try a little harder on our next date.”

She grins and plops down across from him, popping a few more nuggets.

“Being blind has never stopped you before.” Karkat was already busy scheming how he was going to get into her apartment to clean the entire place. And how she was going to NOT notice. The PI that apparently can sniff out any kind of discrepancy.

Yeah, that wasn’t going to happen. It was TEREZI here. He’d know if he moved a chair an inch to the left.

Though it’d be pretty funny to watch her try and figure things out.

She’d definitely be confused as fuck.

“And I just think you’re picky because this was a TOP NOTCH meal for a date. Five fucking stars. I gave the entire 100 fucking percent amount of effort on this.” After that little rant, he continued to look through the file. The victims’ parents could have some information… That’ll go on his to-do list.

Terezi rolls her eyes, sipping some more of her soda as she ‘watches’ him. Her ‘watching’ is mainly blank staring, her dead eyes not even blinking. After a while of this, she decides to speak up. “Apparently you’ve never been on a date.” To keep him from being able to go on some kind of rant about how he’s been on plenty and other bullshit she’d never believe, she quickly changes the topic back to their case.

Which is what they’re supposed to be working on anyways. “But what do you think so far? Similarities? Differences? When is he likely to strike again?”

“For your information, Pyrope, I go on PLENTY of dates.” Of course he was lying. He was never what ANYONE would consider a ‘ladies’ man’. That just wasn’t how Karkat Vantas worked. He really couldn’t stand people in general. And ASKING for a person to subject him to torture? Having to listen to their problems for hours on end? The very thought of it made him want to gag. And it took way less effort to just stay inside and avoid humanity.

So Terezi had been right about the rant, just most of it was mental. He didn’t want to deal with whatever her insane response would be.  
“The thing that’s bugging me the most was the income. If that first one had money, where was it GOING? I think we need to contact the bank. There might have been an account linked to hers that the money could be transferring to. Considering there’s only been two murders we don’t know when or even IF he’s going to strike again.” Considering this a serial killer case was probably jumping the gun, now that he thought about it.

But whatever, he didn’t think anything was official in the books yet. 

“The first was two days ago so we’ll give it until another few days to determine that. Also, did anyone talk to the asshole living above victim number two? Put him on the suspect list. It could be a start.”

“Hehehe, roger!” Terezi takes the rest of the nuggets and stands, feeling pretty satisfied. Of course she could definitely eat more. One thing about being a Terezi was that you would never, ever be completely filled.

Ever.

It was pretty impossible. “I should have his number somewhere in my office… It must have fallen out of the file. Go ahead and call up the bank, let them know I need to smell all her records. Even before she moved back to that dinky little apartment.” She didn’t really want to admit it, but the way he dealt with things… It was impressive.

As much of an annoying pain as he could be, it was obvious he was a damn fine cop.

And no. Fine in only one way. And not in that way.

Shut up.

Karkat already had his cell phone out and ready to call the bank, not noticing as Terezi disappears to go do… Whatever blind PIs did when on the phone with potential suspects. Or, at this point, maybe the prime suspect? For killing the second victim, at least.  
Alright Vantas, let’s see if this piece of shit wants to work. And it was a piece of shit. It wasn’t a high-tech Android or iPhone or anything like that. It was a dial pad. One of the old fashioned ones with the nine key function being the only option.

His last (first and only) touch screen had pissed him off so much he threw it at the wall until it worked. He still maintains that it was the phone’s fault it wasn’t unlocking and not the fact that he couldn’t remember the password.

The guy at the phone store had refused to sell him a new one once he saw the state of the previous one.

Remembering he had a job he was supposed to be doing, he set to work on calling up the bank, leaning back and getting ready for a loud and shout happy argument with whatever retard picked up the phone.

Without really meaning to, his gaze went to Terezi, still on the phone and going through the usual dumbass processes people are always put through. Or is it just the cops and such they always put through hell? In any case, he was really starting to get uncomfortable with the amount of times he’s looked over at her tonight.

Maybe calling this all a date WASN’T such a shitty idea.

After feeling his eyes on her yet again, Terezi takes a break from rifling through her office to look back at him, eyebrow quirked. After a second, she decides to mess with him a bit. How do you mess with the Sheriff? You wink at him. With her glasses sliding down her nose a bit, just enough shows for it to be obvious what she’s doing. WITHOUT showing off her eyes. As much as she loves her blindness, her eyes… Well, that’s a bit of a different thing for a different time.

Subconsciously, she’s counting the number of times he’s looked over at her since they split up, and the number makes a slight blush form on her cheeks. Alright, Pyrope, back to the files. Don’t let him see a blush. Blush? What blush? There was no blush here.

Nopenopenope, just a private investigator looking for a number to call. Oh, hey, number. Where were you hiding, you little bitch?  
Keeping her back to him, Terezi dials the ‘friend’, deciding the easiest way to get information was by ‘inviting’ him over to her place for a bit of ‘comfort’. More often than not, they bought it.

Even if she hadn’t turned away, there was no way Karkat would’ve seen her blushing. He was too busy looking away, embarrassed at getting caught. Shit. Shitshitshit. His face was probably glowing at this point and the only thing going through his head was how the fuck did she know?! Had she known this entire time?! God DAMNIT.

He cursed under his breath, not getting any of it. Everything about liking this chick seemed like a bad idea. Since the beginning they were nothing but rivals. No matter WHAT he did, she was always a step ahead. So how come he liked her so damn much?! It wasn’t FAIR.

His inner ranting was quickly cut short by the guy on the phone clearing his throat. Right. Job to do. Get the information from the bank. Except he couldn’t because apparently things like this were confidential, even to the fucking Sheriff. The information Karkat did manage to get out of the banker (it was all completely willing, no threatening involved at all) was extremely limited.

But he did manage to learn that victim number two’s account had indeed been linked to another’s. The first victim’s account was on it’s own, but apparently the day before the girl’s murder a man had come in with her bank card and took out a certain sum of money. The same amount that was taken from number two’s. Except he didn’t know what that sum was because a certain banker apparently couldn’t even tell him that.

That bit of information was pretty interesting, though.

Begrudgingly (and still totally willingly) the banker agreed to email additional information about the second victim’s account, and hopefully a name for the linked one. He doubted any of this was actually going to happen, but it was worth a shot.

And apparently the bank’s security camera was shit, since it reset on a daily basis. Everything from the day before was recorded over. Basically it was a useless piece of shit. Maybe he should tell the banker that.

“Sounds like a useless piece of shit.” Was that a click? Yeah, that was definitely the dial tone. Way to go, dumbass, the guy had hung up. Figuring calling back would be useless at this point, he just leaned back and looked out the window. Fuck, when did it get so late?  
Oh well, maybe Terezi would have better luck. Since his great conversation was over, he tuned in to whatever she was talking about.

“Well, my condolences anyways. Thank you for giving me some information~ And if you ever feel like getting an update on the case, or if you think you know something, just call me back. Bye now~” God how she hated doing that. But the best part about the ploy being turned down? Getting to hang up and just glare at the phone. While that certainly helped her feel a bit better, it also meant she didn’t get too much information.

Even with a lot of flirting, she hadn’t gotten much information from the guy. Either he didn’t know jack shit, or he was hiding something. It was probably the former, he didn’t sound smart enough for the latter. Or smart in general.

“Tell me you got something!” She heads back to where Karkat was, doing her best to keep the annoyance out of her voice. It’s a miserable failure. So instead she takes deep breaths to try and calm herself, tapping her cane to the table legs. No, she wasn’t going to sit down. She was going to pace and tap at the table and make herself calm.

“The people who work there are asswipes. The most they gave me was that one of the victims was transferring money to another account on a frequent basis. There was nothing up with the other one besides the fact that apparently some guy had been going in and collecting money from it himself with her card. Are you sure her friends said she wasn’t in a relationship? The bankers said they’d email me information about the account the other girl was transferring money to but I don’t think they’re going to do SHIT. We’re on our own here. Maybe one of us could go there in person and see if they’re anymore cooperative upfront.” After a bit of a pause, in which Terezi is completely silent, he adds something else. “How about you? Is the guy still on our suspect list?”

Her response is to growl and plop into a chair. Their situation definitely wasn’t good. The trail was getting colder and they were getting less and less information. “I have no idea. I think that guy is safe, he’s just desperate to get laid is all. At least, I don’t think he’s likely to kill two girls. Doesn’t sound like it.” If the guy wasn’t even able to get himself a proper girlfriend and learn how to actually talk on a phone, she may’ve still had some suspicion. It’s tempting to slam her face onto the table. Very tempting. It’s beckoning. It’s calling to her. It’d be the perfect place for a few stress hits. Maybe a few groans of utter despair.

No, bad Pyrope. C’mon, resist! You still have other options to look at! Dead ends are completely normal! Usually later, though. This was probably the first time she’d hit a dead end just hours after starting a case.

“Yeah, let’s just try an upfront approach. Maybe they’ll give the blind PI some sympathy?”

“You don’t come across as someone who needs sympathy.” He had to respect her for the ways she dealt with the blindness. It was pretty damn impressive. He often forgot. It wasn’t something he’d ever admit to her, though. Ever. “And just forget about the asshole, we can see if any of her other neighbors will be more helpful.”

At the thought of putting on the show of being blind, Terezi’s face split into a grin. She followed Karkat’s words and forgot pretty much everything about the guy from the phone. Her mind was set on fooling the bankers with the blind girl thing. It’d be tricky, because too convincing would mean they wouldn’t believe her just because she’d seem too weak to be a proper detective. Too unconvincing and it’d be obvious she was just playing and didn’t really have any issues at all.

If it came down to it, she could always just remove the glasses. But she’d much rather avoid that. Too many awkward questions.  
“Yeah, but they don’t know that! I mean, I can pull off a really good blind person act. Hehehe, haven’t you seen before?” She lightly taps her foot to his shin, grinning. He probably didn’t, since she’s never really acted like a ‘proper blind girl’. “And from what it sounds like, most of her friends did live around her. I wonder why no one’s said anything…”

“No, I haven’t, because around me you’re always just a sassy little shit.” There was no real venom behind his words; it might have even been a joke. A little fed up with that shit eating grin of hers, he pushed her foot away. “Maybe someone told them not to talk.”  
She slowly nods, humor gone for the moment. Her grin dulls, then eventually turns into a small frown as she begins to think. “That’s worrying… Especially if it’s a serial killer case. That means any and all of them are at risk. If the killer finds any of them a liability, he will kill them. Type or not.” Not only was this guy a ‘serial killer’, but he was most likely one without a type. Anyone in his way had to die. Anyone he saw expendable would die.

Just great.

“So do we talk to them or not? If you’re right and he finds out they said something, they’re dead.” Karkat was just as nervous as she was about this. Fuck, if they did anything wrong, there could be another death. There could be several other deaths. Because of them. And that wasn’t something that he wanted.

“We’ll go through our other leads first, as limited as they are. I’m thinking that if the bank doesn’t work, a trip to the first girl’s apartment may work. If he really is OCD, then there’s bound to be something to hint at… I don’t know, something.” She knows she sounds desperate and probably pretty crazy. But she is desperate. And maybe crazy.

She’s just completely frustrated already. Only a few hours in and they’re down to two leads. One of which is pretty much a dead end and the other one may be a literal dead end.

Maybe this was all just because she wasn’t working on her own. Yeah, that was it. She didn’t have the luxury of the peace and quiet and to work without having to listen to and deal with someone else.

Luxury?

Who was she kidding. She absolutely hated to work alone. It got too lonely too fast.

Taking note of her frustration, Karkat wanted to assure her that they’d be able to solve this. That she didn’t have to worry and stress so much over it. As cheesy and clichéd as it sounded, he wanted nothing more than to pet her hair until that smile of hers was back.

Unfortunately, not only was Karkat Karkat and therefore incapable of doing anything like that, but this was also Terezi. He had no idea as to how she’d react to something like that. For all he knew she would beat him into the ground with that cane that she didn’t need. Damn piece of shit cane.

“Yeah, maybe he fucking cleaned her house or something.” Real smooth, Vantas. Way to be sensitive. Dipshit. “Listen. If he’s really that neat then this fuckass isn’t going to leave shit for us to find. We can try the bank again, you can pull your blind girl routine, but we need to talk to those people. He might be just as interested in cutting off loose ends if he’s as OCD as we think. I bet he’s just waiting for the right time I don’t think they’d be any more in danger than they were right now if we talked to them.” Well that was just even better. He’s good with words, can’t you tell?

Terezi slowly nods, trying to not sink into her pit of despair. So no matter what they did about the neighbors… They were pretty much dead if they didn’t catch this guy. Shit. Why had she ever been interested by this case? Psychos were just that – psychos. They were psychotic. They’d kill innocent people just because they could. Because they were in their way.

“Alright… Sounds good.” After a few seconds of recollecting herself, she manages to drag out some more energy. Just push aside the worry of innocent people being killed because of your questions. Come on, Pyrope. You can do this. “Lead the way to the car, Karkles! I’ll clean up later.”

Eh, she probably wasn’t going to. Not unless he ended up coming over again. Which… Was actually pretty likely. Damn, looks like she’d have to clean. Sometime. Somehow.

Nah.

“It’s getting kinda late, don’t you think?” His head pretty heavy from all this too-serious talk and depressing outcomes no matter what they did, Karkat got up from his chair and went to go grab his jacket. Late or not, they still had to get things done. Especially if they were working to not only catch the killer but to also save several other people’s lives. Because there wasn’t a doubt in his mind that this guy was going to kill the loose ends.

Fuck.

“Eh, it should catch the bank people off guard.” She shrugs and follows him out, pulling on her bright red jacket on the way. She absolutely loved this jacket. Karkat thought it was a hideous thing that should’ve never been created. But she didn’t give a damn what he thought. “Either this is going to be an all-nighter, or we’re going to pass out at-“ She stops, suddenly seeming to realize something. “Are you going to spend the night?”


	3. Chapter 3

Karkat tensed up, not expecting that question. Of course it was going to happen, but he didn’t think it’d be now. He was thinking he could somehow manage to make it back to his own place, maybe get stuck at her apartment some other night. “I wasn’t really planning on it, those fucking little dragons you have everywhere creep me out.” After a bit of rubbing his neck and debating, he figured there really wasn’t any other option. Either spend the night at her place and deal with those freaky plushed things, or try to drive back to his own apartment in the dead of the night while only partially awake. “My place isn’t very close by though, it would be easier. When does the bank even close?”

Terezi’s first response? Near-insane laughing and tapping her cane against him. “I got two completely different answers there. I’m just going to take it to mean that yes, you really are staying.” Well he definitely wasn’t getting a choice now. If she had to, she’d drag his ass back to her place and knock him out.

Except probably not literally since that could be considered assaulting an officer.

Not something she wants on a record.

“Hehehe, congrats. You’re finally gonna spend the night at a chick’s house.” She flashes a wide grin at him, tapping his sides playfully. Lucky him, he’d get to deal with her morning shenanigans. He probably isn’t going to enjoy that all too much. “And I’m pretty sure it’d still be open. Maybe closes midnight? What time is it?”

Completely ignoring her questions – for now – he goes straight for the jibe about him staying at a girl’s place. “What do you mean by THAT? Are you implying that I’ve never been invited to stay the night by girls?” He got into his car and started it up, immediately blasting the heat. He did not like the cold.

That was on his shit list, too.

“It’s like nine pm.” As his mind fully began to wrap around the fact that he was staying the night at Terezi’s place, he gulped. What did he just manage to get himself into? She still scared the shit out of him. Sometimes. Maybe not as often as before, but enough to make sleeping at her place a little worrisome.

“Hehehe, looks like you got something! With you being you, I be you’ve never even had a proper girlfriend.” She giggles and leans as if to pat his shoulder in a gesture of mock-comfort, then decides she’d rather just warm her hands up with the heater.

Wait, when did she get cold? Well whatever, it was warm and she wasn’t going to lose that. “And we should have plenty of time. Now get driving!” She sends a grin over in his direction, shifting in her seat and nudging her shoulder against his.

Yes, that worked much better than having to make her poor fingers suffer in the cold.

“Yeah? What about you? What happened to Strider?” Ugh. Strider. The ONE person he hated in the entire world more than he hated himself. He grit his teeth as he pulled out of the apartment’s parking lot, hands gripping the steering wheel tight enough to turn his knuckles pasty. Even mentioning that guy got him angry. He couldn’t stand Strider.

So his foot pressed down on the gas more than he probably should’ve, and he headed towards the bank. Hopefully they’d get there quickly. He regretted bringing him up. The sooner they were at the bank, the sooner this conversation would be over.

And the sooner he could get some proper heat, his current heater sucked. As much as he fucking adored his car, the heater was shit.

He needed to get that fixed.

Terezi blinks a few times, surprised he had brought up her old flame. She didn’t really think about him all that often anymore. “Hehehe, coolkid? Or, well, not really a kid anymore, but you know what I mean. It’s been a while since we talked, actually. I kind of miss him…” She trails off, pausing a little before continuing. “Maybe I’ll send him an email after all this is over. Or call.” A small smile makes it’s way onto her face, and she allows herself some time to dwell on the past memories. They were fond memories. Sometimes she missed him.

“Nah, he’s probably too busy. Why were you asking?” She turns her attention him, suppressing the urge to tease him. He was so jealous. Maybe. At least, it was tempting to tease him about being jealous. But he was driving. And she could smell the tense coming off him.

“No reason,” Karkat huffed, regretting the decision to bring him up more and more by the second. He had spared a few glances over at her while she was talking, and she had looked so happy thinking about that douchemunch. Well why wouldn’t she be happy thinking about him? Dave had everything he didn’t. He probably SMELLED better, too.

Whatever. Why should he care?

What was he kidding, he would ALWAYS fucking care. He pressed down on the gas more, catching himself shortly after and letting up on the pushing, slowing the car down. For once, he just wanted her to smile like that while thinking of him and NOT the wannabe hipster.

“Hehehe, calm down. We broke up a while ago, Kar. It just didn’t work.” She smiles softly at him, the thought of teasing him completely gone now. She just wasn’t up to doing something like that. “They’re good memories, yeah, but I mean who doesn’t feel good when thinking back on happy memories?” She does her best to send a comforting smile, but it probably doesn’t look all too ‘comforting’. That wasn’t one of her specialties.

Why she was so concerned about him not being upset, she didn’t know.

Okay, no, she knew. She knew very well. But she didn’t want to admit it.

There was no way she was going to.

“I didn’t SAY I was upset.” He pressed down on the brakes harder than he should’ve as he pulled into the bank’s parking lot. The lights were still on in the building, but it looked like they were close to closing time. There was only one more customer inside.

So much for staying open until midnight.

“You better just run in and take care of yourself, these fuckers hate me. It’s actually pretty hilarious but I don’t want to take any chances.” As much as he would’ve liked to go inside and warm up properly, the case came first.

Fuck, he hoped she didn’t take too long.

“Hehehe, try not to blow up thinking about Dave.” Terezi grins wide, then leans over to flick a quick lick across his cheek before hopping out of his car, making sure to grab her cane on her way out. Shit it was freezing out here.

She does a pretty good job of acting like a blind person, even if some was a LITTLE over-exaggerated. Like walking into that door.

Oh, wait. Shit, that wasn’t part of the act. Damnit, Pyrope. That was a pull. Not a push.

Karkat had a good time watching her antics, snrking when she pretty much headbutted the door. At first he thought that was just her messing around, but the look of confusion and then mild horror told him that it was one hundred percent authentic Pyrope.

It takes her about half an hour, but finally she’s out of the bank – fuck it had gotten even colder – looking pleased with herself but also pretty miffed. Keeping up the act all the way to the car, she took a few seconds to debate whether or not to tap it with her cane.

Nah.

She didn’t really feel like giving Karkat another thing to complain about. He was so good at finding them on his own, there was no need to feed him more. “Alright! So they kind of bought the blind thing. And the lady was just tired and wanted to get this shit done with, so yeah. I got a few files. I’ve never been good at sniffing at banking records. I think it’s because it involves numbers.” Numbers did not like her.

Probably had a lot to do with the whole blind thing.

Karkat slowly opened an eye, watching her as she talked and got herself situated. Fuck, he had almost fallen asleep while waiting for her to get done in there. “What, you can’t do numbers?” After a small moment of stretching to wake his muscles up, he snatched the file and flipped through it. “Did they give you the guy’s name?”  
“Yeah. And I gotta say, either he had shitty parents, a convincing argument, or the people just didn’t care.” He was certainly going to love this next part. She knows she did. “John Smith. That’s what his name was.” She gives him a small prod with her cane, snatching back the file and slipping it into the car door’s pocket. “Try not to fall asleep on the way back to my place, alright?”

“Oh my fuck.” He twitched. That was such a God fucking AWFUL name. “He could have at least TRIED to make up a clever alias. I was expecting more of this guy.” Neglecting to promise about not falling asleep, he headed back towards Terezi’s apartment. “Any last minute stops you want to make, Pyrope? Because I’m not getting up at fucking midnight to buy you some cherry flavored soda from halfway across the town.” He probably wouldn’t even last that long. His brain was already telling him to get his ass to sleep because it was sick and tired of the shitty ass day.

It just wanted to turn off and forget about this whole ordeal.

Terezi gasps and clutches her chest, as if insulted by the very thought of not having cherry flavored soda. “Karkat! Of course I already have a supply! How dare you question me! Now go on, get us back. I’m starting to feel drowsiness get to me as well.” She rubs her temple in firm, slow circles, trying to figure out the name thing. Maybe he just didn’t care when he gave the name? At the time, he might not’ve been thinking of a murder investigation. Or maybe he just didn’t care at all? After all, an alias was still a fake name, no matter what it was.

It still led to a dead end.

But she still had to think of all the possibilities, it was how her mind worked.

Too many possibilities.

Karkat grumbled under his breath the entire was back to her place, only able to spare her glances while sitting at a light. She looked deep in concentration again, but at least this time her nose wasn’t pressed to the paper.

By the time they finally got back to her place, he was ready to pass out. It wasn’t even that late, his day had just been ridiculous. Completely and utterly ridiculous. Oh well, at least it was ridiculousness with her and not some asswipe from the station.

Carefully, he elbowed her. Who knew what a Terezi was like when exhausted? “I swear to God Terezi, if you fell asleep I am NOT carrying your blind ass inside.”  
Her response is to lazily wave the air in his general direction, swatting at him. Then her free hand undoes her belt and opens the door, letting her pretty much tumble out of the car into the cold night. At least the blast of cold wakes her up. “Right! Let’s get our asses inside. And you are going straight to sleep. I’ve got a few more things I want straightened out before I pass out.”

After (im)patiently waiting for him to get his ass out of the car, she drags him inside and upstairs. Almost literally, with how slow and sluggish he was being. At least she was SOMEWHAT awake, he seemed to have given up the moment he parked. Once in her room, she pushes him onto her bed. “Get some sleep, Mr. Sheriff. We’ll deal with the bank stuff later. Maybe an email will have come through with something.”

Karkat had barely heard her. He was too busy blinking and trying to figure out what the hell had just happened. Then he shook his head and gave up, flopping to his side and kicking off his shoes. He lied on her bed for a few minutes before realizing he was lying on her bed.

Holy shit.

Holy SHIT.

How did THIS happen?

The red alarm in his head was flashing. What the FUCK was he supposed to do in this situation?!

Before he could figure anything out, Karkat passed out. Consciousness and the problem and the case slipping away as he sunk into the darkness.

Terezi spent another fifteen minutes cleaning up their ‘dinner’ and getting things set out for their case. They were going to have a lot to do tomorrow. Mainly because with so few leads, they couldn’t afford to miss anything.

Once done with that, she tosses a blanket onto Karkat and passes out on the couch, curled into a tight Terezi-ball.


	4. Chapter 4

The next morning, Karkat found himself awake at the crack of dawn. The crack of DAWN. Just fucking great. Grumbling to himself, he sat up and rubbed his head, yawning wide. Where the hell was he? And where did this blanket come from?

He took a bit to stare at the multi-colored thing on him, before pushing it off and getting out of bed, immediately catching sight of Terezi through the open door.

Oh. Right.

He gently prodded her, debating whether or not to wake her up. Nah, he’ll let her keep sleeping. More so because she was pretty adorable when curled up and asleep like that. After a few seconds of staring at her, watching her breathe and shift around in her sleep, he realized he looked like such a creep and switched to pacing. Maybe he could figure some new things out while she was still in dreamland.

Whenever he’d come across something out of place, he’d just pick it up and put it where he thought it should go. Which usually ended up being her creepy as fuck stuffed dragons lying on the floor.

Apparently those fuckers squeaked when stepped on.

Added to the shit list.

Terezi eventually wakes up and stretches, then proceeds to turn and fall off the couch. There wasn’t supposed to be a floor there. “Ow… What the hell…? Why was I on the couch…?” She pushes herself up to be sitting, gently rubbing her shoulder. Fuck that had hurt. It takes a few seconds, then she seems to remember what all had happened. “You awake yet Karkles?”

‘Karkles’ takes a break from pacing around her apartment to glance over at her, slightly amused. And somewhat concerned. Didn’t that hurt? It sounded like it hurt. “You look really tiny when you sleep all curled up like that.” Wait, what? Why did he just say that? What the hell. Hopefully she didn’t find that creepy.

She probably found that creepy.

Fuck.

He makes sure to mentally kick himself.

After a bit of debating between throwing a pillow at his head, she grins wide and decides to tease him. “Aw, was Karkles watching me sleep? That’s really creepy, you know. Watching a poor, defenseless blind girl in her sleep.” She pulls herself off the ground, running a hand through her hair to try and fix it. Well this was useless. Her hair was about as stubborn as she was.

And it had a tendency to make itself into a nest.

Or maybe she just moved around a lot in her sleep.

“I didn’t even know you had one of those here, introduce me to her some time.” Karkat was pretty fucking proud of that little joke. He hoped she caught how hilarious and clever that was. One point for him! Although she’s got fuckton more than him…

A victory was a victory. He wasn’t going to complain.

“Now get over here and help me review this.” He walked over to the table, the bank files and other things neatly laid out. So that’s what she was doing before going to sleep. Alright then. Apparently she could be organized when she WANTED to be.

Terezi’s response is to stick her tongue out and launch a pillow at his head. Yep, she decided she was going to. And she didn’t exactly want to do work this early in the morning. She had just woken up.

“Don’t try pretending you don’t know it’s me.”

“You don’t seem that ‘defenseless’ to me.” Since Karkat didn’t exactly have the greatest of reflexes, he got a face full of pillow. “See?! That’s fucking abuse or something like that!”

She just rolls her eyes and snatches up another pillow, forcing herself to go over to the table. Killer on the loose. Had to catch him. So to help herself wake up a bit more – and feel better about having to work the moment she wakes up – she whaps the pillow against him a couple times. Then to ensure he couldn’t use it against her, she tossed it back to the couch.

It was probably on the ground next to the couch, but come on. Blind girl. At least nothing got broken. “So what were you pacing about if it wasn’t about the case? Or were you just brooding over the information we don’t have?”

That seemed like an awful dangerous thing to do… But she wasn’t able to say she hasn’t done it before, so she opts out of saying anything more.

“Of course I was pacing about the case. Do you think ‘John Smith’ could be code for something? I don’t fucking know, I’m not good at this stuff.” He was used to bossing others around, not having to deal with an almost-nothing-but-dead-ends killer case working with a psychotic blind PI that just infuriates him to no end.

“Some Sheriff you are.” She huffs and plops down in a seat, crossing her arms, and turning her gaze to about where he is, not really caring if she was off. “Just sit down and take a look at those banking records. And no, I don’t think it is. Not unless he’s referring to Doctor Who, which I doubt.”

He rolls his eyes, turning the chair so that the back’s facing the table and sitting that way, straddling it. The position was comfortable and cool and it showed he was in control of the situation. He wasn’t, he knew that, but it made him feel better.

With a lazy and half-annoyed flick, he opened the banking records. “How about the girls’ friends? We still need to talk to them.”

“I don’t have any of their numbers. We’d have to go back to both places to try and talk to them. Unless you have them and just never shared the info?” She raises an eyebrow at him, leaning back in her chair and fighting back a small smile. Riling him up definitely made this a bit easier to deal with.

“Are you kidding? I wasn’t even planning on getting involved in this before some nosy little PI showed up banging at my office’s door. I was giving the case to one of the other officers. I don’t have shit that you don’t know about.” Karkat was already bored of the banking files. There wasn’t really much new information, and the exact amount being transferred wasn’t INCREDIBLY important. It wasn’t going to help them catch this guy.

But he highlighted it anyways, because it could suddenly become useful. It was about $2,000 a month. Jesus FUCK.

“Le sigh. And for once I was hoping you were hiding something. Because that’d mean we’d actually HAVE something.” After taking a moment to mope, she leans across the table to sniff at the bank file. Just ink and paper to her, too marked up and foreign smelling for her to make anything out. “Anything interesting?”

“Nothing besides the fact that he was taking a lot more than I thought. About $2,000 a month.” He yawned, not really bothering to try and stifle it, then glanced down at his uniform. He had slept in his God damn UNIFORM. Fuck he needed to stop by his apartment later to change. “At least we’ve got the victims’ addresses.”

Yeah, because that was TOTALLY going to help.

At least it was something. Right?

Right.

“Two grand? Hmm, that’s enough to live off of, especially if you’ve got a job.” She runs her hands through her hair, then makes a face. Ew. That was just a little on the greasy side. “Once we decide what we’re gonna do, I suggest going and talking to the victims’ friends, I’m going to take a shower.” If it had been any other guy in her apartment, she would’ve just dealt with the greasy hair. Or kicked his ass out and locked him out, telling him to stay in the hall.

But she knew Karkat wouldn’t try anything suspicious. Okay, well, she knew NO guy was stupid enough to try and mess with her, but just shut up.

That’s what she was going with.

“I’ll make a couple calls at the department to let them know that I’m gonna be out working on this case again. Hey, don’t fall or some shit like that. I don’t feel like having to prance in there and save your ass.” He could see it now. Terezi slipping on something and needing her sorry ass saved from drowning in the shower.

Yes, of course, that was totally likely.

Terezi grins wide, nearly splitting in face in two, then leans further across the table to lick up his cheek. “You know you wouldn’t mind if it I fell in the shower and you had to save me.” To add extra… Whatever the hell… She winks, cackling softly to herself.

Karkat was completely frozen in place, his face slowly heating up. Where the hell had THIS come from?!

Kiss her, do it, DO IT DO IT DO IT.

He pushed the little voice in his head away. Now was NOT the time to be having annoying voices screaming in his ear about kissing her. She was probably just messing with him anyways. That was kind of what she always did. It was her thing.

So he did the Karkat thing.

“Ugh, Terezi you got spit all over me.” He makes a face of disgust and makes a show of wiping his cheek off. Hopefully she doesn’t notice how absolutely red he is.  
A small pouts makes its way onto her lips at the lack of reaction, but then her nose picks up on something. She could smell an extra bit of red and feel the increased heat on his face. Her grin’s back and sharper than before. “I can smell that Karkles~ You can’t hide anything from this PI!”

She’s suddenly hit by the urge to tackle him to the ground and have a –ahem– sloppy make-out session.

That’s a very bad idea. Let’s not do that. There’s a case to solve and a shower to be taken and she was fairly certain he saw her as nothing but a pest.

Immediately Karkat’s berating himself for blushing so easily, resisting the urge to bang his head against the table a couple of times. What the hell was he supposed to do now?! Fuck he was awful in these kinds of situations. Not like they happened all too often for him anyways.

Wait.

Was that… A piece of hair? That was. There was a little strand of hair resting on her face, right beside her shades. He wanted to brush that piece of hair behind her ear. Just tuck it there and let his fingers brush against her skin. No, he NEEDED to. This was ONE HUNDRED and EIGHTY percent necessary.

He almost did it, too. The tips of his fingers were lightly touching the side of her face, at the perfect spot for him to just brush his fingers back and bring her hair behind her ear.

Then his courage is gone, just as fast as the need to fix her hair had come.

His hand was quickly back at his side and he was standing, turning away from her and blushing more. Shit. “You should just hurry up and get ready so we can go. I want to have time to head back to my apartment a little later to grab some clean clothes.”

Terezi blindly stares up at him, a stab going through her chest and skin tingling a little where his fingers had been. Slowly, she forces herself to straighten in her seat, her teeth going into her lip to try and fix whatever was going on in her head. Why had she been looking forward to whatever his hand was going to do…? What WAS his hand going to do…?

Oh well… Not like she was ever going to get the chance to find out. No matter HOW badly she wanted to know. “Right… I’ll get to that.”

Yeah, she definitely couldn’t deny things anymore. That was out of the question.

But there was no way she was going to let emotions get in her way. That’s not what Pyropes did. So she stands, takes a small breath to calm herself, then steadily walks to her room to go shower.

That’ll make her feel better. Hopefully.

Once she’s gone, Karkat sighs and slumps, rubbing the back of his head and tugging his hair in frustration. He should’ve done it. No, it was a good thing he didn’t. She probably wouldn’t have liked that. Yeah. Not doing it was a good thing.

He still wasn’t convinced.

Well, that strand of hair was bound to fall out of place again. And if not that one, then another. He’d have another opportunity to actually do it and hopefully not be a douche. Or did she not want him to?

Fuck emotions, this shit was hard.

So instead of dwelling on it longer, he leaves her to her shower and goes to warm up the car for a ride full of lovely awkward and silence.

After Terezi’s done with her shower and changed into a new suit, she steps out of her room – towel still rubbing at her hair – and sniffs around. “Kar? You here?” She waits a few seconds, hoping for a reply, before tossing the towel and grabbing her gear. As she runs to the car, she can faintly hear the droplets from her hair splattering around.

“You could have at least told me you were going to the car!” She sticks her tongue out at him as she slides into his car, buckling up and doing her best to stay as normal as possible. Come on, don’t think about the moment that could’ve been so much more.

No, bad PI. Stop that.

“You’re a private investigator, Terezi. I assumed you could figure it out on your own.” He considers teasing her about the whole buckling up thing again, then quickly changes his mind. It probably wasn’t a good idea to argue just for the hell of it right now. So he started the car and headed towards the place that started this entire bullshit ‘partner’ incident: Victim number 2’s apartment building.

This was going to be lovely.

Note the sarcasm.

“So, Sheriff. What shall we do here? Look for missed clues? New clues? Suspicious people? Or go straight to the friends?” Well that had been a quiet car ride. A scarily quiet   
car ride. Karkat wasn’t usually that quiet.

Well, no time for her to sit around wondering about things like that. There was a case at hand. She stops messing with the belt and undoes it and gets out of the car, taking a quick stretch to try and wake herself up. She was still partially asleep, and a hot shower had done nothing to change that.

“If you think you missed anything the first time around, knock yourself out and sniff around. I’M going straight to her friends. Those assholes won’t even know what’s coming to them. We’re GETTING some answers today whether they wanna be stubborn dipshits about it or not.” He gave a nod before pushing himself out of his car, confident that it would end like that.

Hell, he had to be confident about SOMETHING in order to make up for that shitstain of a fuck up he did earlier.

Speaking of his screw up, he shot a sideways glance at Terezi. Ever since she had caught him looking, Karkat had been sneaking looks at her without being so obvious about it. Even so, it was still pretty obvious he was watching her occasionally. Especially when a small, rare smile would tug at the corners of his lips.

Terezi thinks for a bit, absently gnawing on her lower lip as she does. She’s slowly picking through the possibilities and things that could happen, most of which involve Karkat and the killer and a not-so-pleasant ending. Yeah, she can’t let that happen. Definitely not.

“Alright, I’m going with you. We’re partners after all, aren’t we?” Mustering all her strength, she sends a wide grin his way. Hopefully none of the things she thought of would happen.

Good. She’s smiling. The fact comes as a huge relief to him, and he almost sighs as he mentally relaxes. But that would definitely raise her curiosity, so he doesn’t. “Alright, Terezi. Moment of truth. Either we get some fucking information or go and weep ourselves to sleep over our complete and utter fucking failure at solving this case.”

Wait. Shit. He’d forgotten to tell her that the department had mentioned the autopsies on the bodies being completed. Oh well, he couldn’t just go and add that after such a beautiful/insulting rant like that one. It just wasn’t right.

He’d tell her after all this was over.

She was strongly tempted to tease him again, but after how her last teasing went… It was a better idea not to. She didn’t feel too up to it, either.

Instead, her energy goes into keeping up the façade and not letting it be known that she was getting more shaken by the minute. Things were starting to look grim in lots of places. Maybe if she just… Stopped thinking about outcomes and possibilities?

Yeah, that wasn’t possible.

“Lead the way, Karkat.” Shit. Maybe he didn’t notice that little slip of the tongue? Just keep talking, hopefully he’ll leave it alone. “The cold is starting to make me a little numb.” Damnit, Pyrope! Really?

There was a growing concern for Terezi bubbling up inside him, but he choose to ignore it. Shit, maybe the whole situation before had fucked her up more than he thought. Was that a good or a bad sign? Did that mean she had wanted him to do something? Or that she was upset because he had tried something?

Fuck, okay, this was a really bad time to be thinking about shit like that. Focus on the case. “Well fuck. Can’t have that. C’mon.” He grabs her by the wrist and pulls her into the apartment building, the burst of warmth slowly bringing feeling back to his ears.

A small laugh escapes her. No, that wasn’t a laugh. That was more like a giddy giggle. She happily follows him inside, trying to ignore the extra warmth and slight tingling spreading from where he was gripping her. “Hehehe, I didn’t know you cared about whether I froze or not.”

Well, it seems like she can tease again.

“Who’s going to annoy the hell out of me if you freeze?” Cautiously, he slips his hand down to hers and grips tightly. “Jesus FUCK Terezi, you even FEEL cold. You need some mittens or some shit like that.” He uses this as an excuse to interlock their fingers, loosening his grip to make sure he didn’t hurt her or anything. “Luckily you have a police officer here. The fucking SHERIFF. That means that I’m legally bound to selflessly sacrifice myself for your sake in this shithole of a situation.” He couldn’t make up for earlier, but he could definitely try.

Assuming she was upset because she was expecting something.

Her face starts to turn a bright red, and she has to wrestle her emotions back to keep herself calm and collected. Now really was NOT the time to be getting all schoolgirl about this. They were on a mission. A damn important one, too. “Aw, my knight in angry red armor~” That didn’t mean she couldn’t tease him and sound like an overly clichéd swooning damsel. She gently squeezes his hand and brushes her shoulder against his, deciding to show at least a little bit of sincere affection.

“You know which room numbers are theirs, right? I can’t smell any of them without getting really close, and that would look kind of suspicious.” Being suspicious was not something they wanted to be.

It’s a bit of a struggle to keep his smile back, but he does it. He even manages to not make any kind of dumbass remark about her blush – that was good, right? – or the small squeeze on his hand. “Well yeah I know the numbers, but what’s our plan here? Are we just going to barge on in and question a bunch of potential witnesses about their dead friend?!”

“Hehehe, calm your shit, Karkles.” She gives his hand another squeeze, smiling softly at him. Maybe the reason he had pulled back before was because he didn’t know how she’d react? Yeah, let’s go with that. If she showed her softer and more affectionate side at least a little more… “We can start off with whether she had been acting strange for the past while, whether there’s been any suspicious people she’s hung out with. We should definitely ask about her past relationships.”

He found holding her hand to be oddly comforting, and he gently squeezed back. Okay, this was good. Definitely good. She wasn’t taking her hand away. “How about you handle all this social bullshit and I’ll stand there and glare at them menacingly?” Yes, that sounded like a good plan. A very good plan.

“Hehehe, you? Menacing? I think you’re delusional.” She snickers a little, then licks his cheek. “But alright. After all, I don’t think you’d be too good if one of them suddenly burst into tears.” Her face had heated up a little when he returned the hand squeeze. Of course she knows he’s sweet, she’s ALWAYS known that, but having him actually show it?

She doesn’t want to admit it, but her heart does an odd little flutter.

“Are you kidding me? I don’t know what your smell-vision is telling you, but I’m TERRIFYING.” And I’d do worse than awful if they started crying and we both know it.” Sympathy had never been his strong point, and he wasn’t going to start trying to MAKE it his strong point now, either.

But he did notice her blush getting worse. It was tempting to smirk at his victory, but even though she was blind she’d still KNOW. Somehow. Oh how the tables have turned… Eventually he’ll point out how cute she was when red. But he needed to wait for the right moment. THEN he would proclaim his victory.

But until then… He stops in front of one of the friend’s doors, looking down at her properly. “Better not chicken out on me.”

Terezi sticks her tongue out and pulls her hand back. It was more out of rebelling against him than anything else. But now her hand was extremely gone, and she was already missing his warmth. No, they had to stay professional. They were working a case. Not on a date.

Okay maybe thinking about a date was a bad idea.

“No, I am not chickening out on you. And if you really are terrifying, perhaps you should stay outside and wait? Otherwise they may burst into tears at the sight of you.” She smirks a bit at him, pushing her glasses up.

Realizing he was on the verge of getting left behind and therefore left out of the loop, Karkat crossed his arms and grumbled. Maybe he was being a little too grumpy, what with her hand no longer in his and all. He pouted a bit, missing her hand more than he thought he would. And more than he would like to.

She grins wide and nudges him with her shoulder. “Hehehe, you’re acting all cute and pouty. Does the Sheriff perhaps want to come in? You can, but just try not to terrify them, alright?” She pats his head, giggling to herself. Yeah, he’s definitely adorable. And yeah, she’s totally falling for him.

Shit.

“No promises, Miss PI.” He didn’t snap at her about touching his hair, but his hand did kind of twitch as if to bat her away. God damnit, his hair had been perfect. Had been. As in, it wasn’t anymore. Because she just fucked it over. “Let’s just get this over with.”

“Hehehe.” She feels herself leaning towards him, as if to kiss his nose, then she quickly catches herself and turns to knock on the door instead. That… Probably would’ve ended badly. Definitely would’ve.

There’s the sound of hurried footsteps, then a nervous sounding woman asks who it is. Well, it’s not a surprise she sounds worried, her friend was just recently killed in her own apartment.

“I’m Terezi Pyrope, the PI asked to work on this case, and this is Karkat. He’s my partner. We’re here to ask a few questions.” Even though the door was still shut, she figured there was a peephole. So she had gestured to Karkat when she announced him and was currently wearing a rare, pleasant smile.

It was extremely well practiced.

After a short pause, the door is opened by a shortish woman around her mid-20s, with bags under her eyes and her nerves obviously frayed. It was clear she was on high alert and extremely paranoid after the murder.

Terezi’s smile softens more, and her face falls a bit. That part had not been faked, she felt sorry for this poor woman. Her friend was dead and the killer still on the loose. “I’m sorry to disturb you so soon after your loss, but there are a few questions I’d like to ask. May we come in?” Hopefully she wasn’t the type to lash out at the authorities because of the criminal not being caught…

It was only two seconds into all this, and Karkat was already fed up with how good she was at this. Hell, the other chick hasn’t even said anything yet and he was ALREADY frustrated with her!

“Would you like some drinks? I could fetch you some soda…” The woman slowly moves out of their way, to let them into her apartment. 

Terezi spares a quick glance to Karkat before taking a few small steps into the apartment, holding her cane in a way that WOULDN’T scream ‘blind woman’. In her experience, letting people know you were blind apparently meant you couldn’t do jack shit. “No, I’m fine. Vantas? You want anything to drink?” It felt really strange and wrong to be calling him by his last name when she wasn’t extremely pissed off at him.

But she had to, to keep the professional look. Hopefully he kept to it, too…

Somehow she doubted that.

“I think I’ll pass, Pyrope. If there’s any food in this place I’ll take that though. Jesus fuck I’m starving.” Nope, he was not going to keep it very professional. That was not his thing.

But he did catch the look the woman gave him. Oh great, maybe he SHOULD have tried to be professional? It was obvious she didn’t think they were capable of solving this.  
“Language!” Terezi scowls at her ‘partner’ and brings her cane around to lightly tap at his shin. Of all the cusses in the world, it had to be the f-bomb. Genius, Sheriff.  
When she turns back the girl, her face is the same as before. Soft and sympathetic, willing to listen to whatever she had to say. “Is there anything that had seemed… Off about her? Had she been acting odd recently? Or did she suddenly change within the past few months?” Okay Pyrope, calm down and take your time.

Patience! Piling all these questions on her at once is just going to overwhelm her!

Karkat was busy rubbing his shin as nonchalantly as possible, biting back curses and grumbles of discomfort. God damnit, he had thought she was DONE with cane attacks by now.

Apparently he was wrong.

Fuck.

“W-Well…” Wait, that was a stammer. And she trailed off. He slowly became less intrigued with the bruise forming on his leg and started to pay more attention to what was getting to her. At least, the paranoid part of him was. The part that likes to bitch and moan about everything was still focused on the throbbing in his leg.  
Terezi can also tell something’s off with her behavior, her teeth gently pressing into her lip. “Is there something the matter?”

“No, nothing.” That was definitely too fast of a response. Something was up. Carefully, he elbows Terezi and sends her a ‘please don’t tell me you’re buying this bullshit’ look. Then he remembers that she’s blind. Hopefully her freaky nose picked up on that expertly executed bullshit-calling face.

Not showing whether she did or not, she bats at him. That nudge had been anything but casual. He really needed to work on that kind of thing. “You know you can trust us, right? We’re only here to help. We promise.” The smile she gives is a little more forced this time, worry starting to get to her.

“Well. She had been acting weird. Actually. She had been seeing somebody. He… Well…” She breathes in, the breath coming out shaky and scared. “He told us not to say anything. He threatened to kill us.” Karkat chose to ignore the tears welling up in her eyes, knowing full well there wasn’t anything he could do to help with that. Instead, he focused on the ‘us’ thing. So the other friends knew about this, too. He had threatened all of them.

That or he had lied to her.

Either one was really lucky.

“I didn’t… I didn’t know what to do. I-I’m sorry. I’m so sorry…”

Terezi moved from her frozen state, pushing herself towards the woman and gently patting her shoulder. “It’s alright. Would you like protection until this is over?” This was definitely not good. Shit. Shitshitshit this was not good.

When asked if she wanted protection, she cracked. And then broke. She spewed everything she knew about what had happened between her friend and the killer. She told her about the letters, to her friend’s shady activity, to the screams she had heard on the night of the murder. It wasn’t FAIR. Of all the people for this to happen to, why was it THEM?! Why did it have to be HER?

She continued on like that for a while, telling them what she knew about the guy. Of course it wasn’t much. She didn’t even know his name. And his looks were average. Nothing that would stand out in a crowd.

Karkat watched this whole scene from a distance, having moved back a few more feet. Crying, hysterical women were REALLY not his strong point. People in GENERAL was not his strong point.

Unless it was pissing them off or making them so frustrated that they quit. THOSE he could do.

How the hell had Terezi managed to get so good at that?

A little awkwardly, Terezi pulls the shorter woman into a gentle hug, lightly patting her back. “Shh… It’ll be alright. We’ll catch this guy, and we’ll make sure you and all of your other friends aren’t hurt. We’ll get him before he strikes again.” She’s speaking softly, trying to help ease her grief and guilt. While hugging her, she glances over to Karkat. Was he taking notes or just standing and staring like an idiot?

Probably the latter.

The girl continued to cry, then eventually just slumped against Terezi, giving up completely. It was pretty pathetic to watch.

Good thing Karkat wasn’t watching. He had TRIED to do notes and write down what she was saying. Like cops were supposed to do. But instead he just ended up doodling a kangaroo doing a backflip. It was a pretty shitty kangaroo, but cut the guy some slack. He doesn’t usually draw that kind of stuff.

And he had all the information they’d need memorized. One trait of his that WASN’T awful was his memory. He had an excellent one. He wouldn’t be forgetting any of this stuff anytime soon.

“T-Thank you…” The girl’s still stuttering. Stuttering and clinging to Terezi. But at least she’s beginning to calm down.

That was definitely a good sign. “You never did answer me, though. Do you want protection?” Terezi was extremely worried for this woman, especially if she was this shaken up. Either the killer had proved he could and would find out if they ratted on him, or he had convinced her well enough.

Whichever it was, it wasn’t good.

“Of-Of course.” She wiped away some of her tears, her breaths still short and quick, but slowly returning to normal. Then she stands still, frozen in place, as though she’s realized something. Terezi tilts her head, trying to figure out what it was now. “Miss, are you… blind?”

So that was it? She barks out a laugh and nods, not too worried about her knowing it now that they had their information. “Yes, I am. But I assure you, that’s never stopped me before.” The fact that it took the woman a mental break down made her feel a little bit better about the whole disability thing.

Karkat shifted in his spot, not feeling too comfortable anymore. Well, he hadn’t from the beginning, but now there was something that felt… Wrong. Very wrong. Something was not right, and it wasn’t just the fact that there was a murder. Something else.

It felt like they were being watched.

He took a step towards Terezi, planning on mentioning the feeling to her. He wanted out of this place. He wanted her out of this place. NOW.

Hearing him get closer, she glances back at him. Then she senses his unease and shivers. Alright, time to wrap it up and get the hell out of her. She turns back to the woman, keeping her face calm and sympathetic. “Thank you for your time. I’ll call up the station and have them send some cops over ASAP. I’ll even see if they’ll take you to a safe house.”

Now that she had gotten his vibe, she could feel it too. Something was very wrong here, and it was starting to give her the creeps. “They should be here in a matter of hours.” And with that, Terezi turns and leaves, the hand on her cane a pasty white as her grip tightens.

“Thank you…!” The girl calls out to them one more time before the door shuts. Karkat’s already out the door and catching up to Terezi, easily able to tell she’s spooked.  
“So you felt it, too?” He sounded much more serious and professional than usual. That place had given him the serious heebie-jeebies.

“Only after you had your little… Moment.” What else was she supposed to call his hesitating step? “But yeah. That place… She really isn’t safe. When’s the soonest you can have someone over there?” She’s gnawing on her lip, a habit she’s had for years. It only ever happens whenever she’s embarrassed or highly strung out from worry or stress.

She didn’t want to stay in this building anymore. They had all the information they needed, they didn’t even need to go talk to the others.

That would just put them in the same amount of danger as the other girl. She didn’t want that.

“I could call right now,” he offered, sensing her mounting worry. He was getting pretty uncomfortable, too. But not nearly as bad as Terezi. “And I did not have a moment. I just wanted out.”

Terezi sucks it up and puts on her usual playful manner. “It was a moment, don’t deny it.” She grins and nudges him, only able to keep up the act for that short amount of time before she’s back to worried. “And yes, please. She’s been through enough. The last thing she needs is to be traumatized or killed.”

After a brief nod, Karkat pulls out his phone and dials the station’s number, alerting the office of the girl and her situation. It only took a few quick minutes, and then he hung up.

Then he looked down at his clothes.

“I need to go back to my place. I… really need some new fucking clothes.”


	5. Chapter 5

Karkat was pretty much 200% done with his uniform. It was uncomfortable, hard to properly move in, and he’d been wearing it since the morning before. No one would care if he just… Casually… Slipped on a sweater for a couple of hours, right? Yeah.

Plus, he wasn’t even on duty. Not technically, at least.

He was partnering with a freelancer, that meant he wasn’t on duty, right?

Right.

“Hehehe, I don’t think I’ve ever gotten to smell your place before.” That sounded like a pretty good idea to her. Maybe it’d smell like him? Okay, well, of COURSE it was going to smell like him, it was his place. But would it smell as good? “To the car!” She lets loose a cackle, deciding to not start thinking in circles about his scent.

She did feel a lot better knowing that the poor girl would be taking care of, though.

“Wait, what?! Who said you were coming?! I was going to drop you off!” A part of him knew he wouldn’t be able to say no. She wouldn’t allow him to. And that same part of him didn’t want to tell her no.

Yet… God damnit.

This was not his plan.

“Hmm… Nope. You don’t get a choice. After all, you slept in my bed last night.” She grins wide, moving to lick his cheek. “It’s only fair that I get to smell your place.”  
“I knew that was going to come back and bite me in the ass,” he grumbles, taking a moment to wipe her disgusting as fuck tongue germs off his face. He needed to find some way to train her. This licking thing was not going to work. “In all seriousness do I really taste that good?!”

“Yes! You taste like cherries! And candy!” She lets out a little laugh, then gets an arm around his neck and pulls him closer. She then proceeds to lick up his face. Several times. “Hehehe, it’s so good!” Okay, so he tasted a lot like skin and flesh and what humans taste like, but something about him gave him a kind of candied cherry taste. It was weird.

But she didn’t question it. She loved it.

“AH- FUCK- WHAT’RE YOU-“ He gave up on trying to scream his frustrations out, instead focusing his energy on getting the fuck out of her grip. Damn she had a tight grip. A STRONG grip, too. How the hell did this even happen?! “Come oooon, get OOFFFF!” He resorts to loud whining, his face taking on more and more color as time progressed. “I have to DRIVE.”

“Hehehe, so I get to go with you?” She’s grinning wide, her long stretched out licks diminishing into small little catlike ones. More for picking up the taste of his bright cherry face than for annoying him.

The licks weren’t even originally for that purpose. But it was a nice cover.

They were originally for getting him close to her again and so she could get a whiff of him.

It was super effective.

“YES. YOU CAN COME WITH ME, JUST GET OFF.” While he would never admit to this, Karkat actually enjoyed things like this. Messing around with her and not worrying about killers or Daves.

But it was pretty much his JOB to bitch and complain about everything and anything. Old habits die hard. Really hard. Or not at all.

Getting into the car, he started it up and started to back out. Realizing what he was doing, Terezi quickly hops into her seat, shooting him a quick glare. He sends a small smirk back.

Just because he enjoyed their shenanigans didn’t mean he also enjoyed being a dick to her.

It was a good thing his apartment was close, she was probably going to –

“Thank you, Kar~kles~”

Okay, so he wasn’t expecting her to bounce back pretty much immediately.

Terezi refused to stay upset or to let him get to her. He was just trying to get some childish payback. She wasn’t going to let him have his fun. So she acted as though he hadn’t started backing out without her, instead putting on her seatbelt and resting her head on the strap.

“Just wake me up when we get there, alright? Sleeping on the couch was a horrible idea. I should’ve just crawled in with you.”

He shakes off the fact that it is impossible to annoy her and continues the conversation. “I’m bringing that statement up next time I crash at your place.” Next time. As in, implying that there would BE a next time.

Well… He wouldn’t be against it if there were. He actually WANTED there to be another time at her place. Maybe several other times.

He still couldn’t figure out why he liked her so much.

Actually, he could. Easily. But a list of reasons as to why would take him nights and nights to write out. So he wasn’t going to do that.

He was just going to hope that she hadn’t caught on to the whole implying thing.  
She, in fact, had. And she grinned at it, shifting to be looking at him. “Hehehe, so you wanna sleep together? All you had to do was ask, Karkles.” She gives his thigh a playful prod with her cane, careful to not be too hard about it. Then she retracts it and sets it on the floorboard, her head going back to the seatbelt and eyes closing.  
Nope. Her cheeks weren’t hot.

She refused to think of the fact that she kind of wanted to share a bed with him, too.

That wasn’t going to happen.  
For a moment, he considers starting an argument with her just for the hell of it, but when he sees her sleeping… He can’t bring himself to do it. She’s just too fucking adorable when she sleeps, it’d be a crime to wake her up right now.

After a short trip spent with him looking at her most of the time, he pulls into his spot in the parking lot and gently nudges her. Was she still asleep?

A soft mumble and a little bit of shifting around from her told him that yes. Yes she was.

Well, he couldn’t just ditch her in the car. That’d be rude. Worst-case scenario, he has to carry her in. It didn’t look like too much of a tough job, she looked small enough.  
Slowly reaching over, Karkat leaned to unbuckle her seatbelt, deciding that he was going to do it.

Terezi mumbles a little more, shifting around again. Her head slips off the buckle strap, and she gets startled awake, blushing when she feels how close he is. “Karkles, what are you doing…?” She had been trying for a joking, teasing manner, but she ends up sounding more embarrassed than anything else.

Apparently just waking up and trying to tease him didn’t work all that well. Especially when waking up to something like this.

In an attempt to cover up her blush, she rubs at her eyes, pushing her glasses up a little.

He quickly pulls back, looking away and blushing a little himself. Great. Just GREAT. This was JUST his fucking luck. And now he was blushing, too, thinking of what she might’ve thought he was doing.

Okay Vantas, think fast. “I-I was going to carry you in…” He coughed a little nervously, wondering how she was going to take this. “I had to get the seatbelt off.” Another awkward cough. 

God he hoped she believed him.

Her blush continues to deepen, then she pulls herself together and licks his cheek, managing a soft smile. “Hehehe, such a gentleman, aren’t you?” She pauses, wondering if she should act on the impulse to kiss him. Well, a cheek kiss couldn’t hurt, could it?

No, it couldn’t. So she quickly pecks his cheek, continuing to talk so things didn’t devolve into awkward silence. “You don’t have to carry me. I’d probably be too heavy, anyways. Come on, lead the way to your apartment.”

On her way out of the car, she stumbles and nearly falls over. Her face much brighter, she snatches her cane from the car and shuts the door. Well, that was embarrassing.  
Karkat was left there blinking, his hand slowly going up to touch the place she kissed. Had she really just…? Holy SHIT had that seriously happened?!

Yeah. It had.

And this was about to happen, too.

Not only had she just done something utterly fucking adorable, but then she had CHALLENGED him. She definitely did NOT look too heavy for him to handle.

Now he HAD to do it. Or at least try.

So he snuck up behind and her and just… Casually… Kind of scooped her up into his arms.

Fuck.

She WAS a little on the heavy side. People certainly didn’t weigh as little as they looked. Or maybe he was just weak. Probably that.

Okay, Vantas. You’re doing good. You haven’t dropped her yet. And you AREN’T going to drop her.

“No, fuck that. Terezi Pyrope, I am carrying you up to my God damn apartment whether you like it or not!”

Terezi, previously frozen from the surprise of being picked up out of nowhere, finally manages to do something. Squeak.

And she can only do that for a good few seconds, before she finds her proper voice back.

“K-Karkat! What’re you doing?!” Her arms were around his neck, and she was utterly terrified of being dropped. Being dropped was NOT on her list of things to do. “I don’t need you to carry me…! I can still walk…!”

Oh, who was she kidding. Despite being red in the face and her voice higher than it should be, she was definitely enjoying this. Probably more than she should. Although she had to admit, his strength had taken her by surprise; he didn’t seem like the kind of guy to work out a lot. Or at all.

Her protests end pretty soon, and she makes herself more comfortable in his arms. Trying to not think about how she’s IN HIS ARMS. And he’s carrying her BRIDAL STYLE into his APARTMENT.

Well, his neighbors were certainly going to have some questions.

Unfortunately, Terezi had pinned him perfectly. Karkat was, indeed, NOT the type to work out. Ever. He was pretty scrawny and weak. This had NOT been a good idea. Why did he even do this?!

He glanced down at her, then remembered. Even though her face was buried in his shoulder, he could still easily tell that she was a bright red.

Alright, Karkat. No dropping her. You cannot drop someone this adorable. It has to be illegal or something. Just a little bit longer… A few more steps… Come on, be a man!  
He tightens his grip on her to make sure she didn’t fall, pulling her closer to him. To keep his mind off her weight, he decides to focus on other things. Like how warm she was. And how she fit perfectly in his arms…

And how she was practically clinging to him. That was definitely something he focused on.

He literally kicks his apartment door open, then stands in the doorway for a couple of seconds.

Shit. He hadn’t thought past this. What did he do with the sleeping girl now? Or, semi-sleeping.

He glances down at her, smiling more.

Terezi’s face is nestled into the crook of his neck, really only partially asleep. She’s conscious enough to recognize his warmth and scent but asleep enough to not have any kind of filter on her thoughts. Like how he made her feel safer than she’s ever felt before. She was so used to dealing with nothing but broken people and criminals.  
“You smell really good…” No filter on what she says, either. At least she was too tired to say anything more than that. She curls up in his arms more, nuzzling into his chest and relaxing.

Then she ends up falling asleep, perfectly content where she was.

Not wanting to stay standing any longer, Karkat goes to the couch and sits there, keeping Terezi in his arms. He didn’t know where to put her.

And he didn’t want to let her go, either. Even though right now was probably the perfect time to go and shower… But he really didn’t want to let her go.

Maybe he could just… Hold her for a little longer. She won’t notice, right? Right.

He’ll move her to his bed after he’s done hugging her. She deserved that, at least.

His attention goes back to her when she mumbles something, tuning in. Was she… Dreaming about cherries? He wasn’t too sure whether that was weird or completely adorable.

But he definitely knows that the little squeeze she gives him is adorable. Extremely adorable. Too adorable. It was tempting to kiss the top of her head.

He spent a few minutes debating whether to show a little bit of affection or not, his inner arguing interrupted when she starts to talk.

“Mmm… Kar…? I thought you were gonna go change or somethin’…? An’ what’s takin’ so long to get to your ‘partment…?” Terezi’s badly slurring now, groaning softly as a hand goes to rub at her eyes. Nope. She’s got glasses. Instead of moving them just a little so that she could rub her eyes, she gave up and just flopped back against him.  
No more couches. She was absolutely exhausted and they had barely done anything today.

Couches were bitches.

“We’re almost there. Vroom fucking vroom. Car noises. Just go back to sleep.” Karkat mustered up the rest of his imaginary strength and lifted the girl back up. Fuck this had been such a bad idea. He grits his teeth and mans the fuck up. Come on, not much longer until she’s out of his arms.

Okay, that was a little depressing to think about. He really enjoyed her warmth against him.

He decided to think of it as ‘only a little longer until he can drop her without her getting pissy at him’. Yeah, that works better.

It’s still upsetting, though.

He sets her down on his bed and pulls the sheets over her, taking her glasses off and setting them on the nightstand. He was dead meat if ANYTHING happened to them.  
“Stay here.” Even though he figured it was useless to tell her that – she was asleep – he still said it. Because he wanted to.

Then he left to go take a shower, grimacing a little when he thought about how much he needed one.

How could she possibly stand this? He must smell awful to her.

Back in his bed, Terezi’s mumbling to herself and shifting around in his bed. “So sweet… Thanks, Karkles…” She curls herself up in his sheets, pretty much rolling herself into a Terezi-coon of sorts. Then she’s back to her deep sleep, the last thing on her mind being how delicious cherries smell.

Eventually, he gets out of the heaven that was a shower. Fuck he felt a lot better now that it didn’t feel like he was caked in grime. Peeking into his room, he darted in, grabbed a sweatshirt and some pants, then slipped back into the bathroom to change.

Blind and asleep or not, Terezi’s nose still terrified the shit out of him.

After he’s fully clothed in a baggy sweatshirt and some nice loose pants, he goes back to his room, checking on Terezi. Well… She was a burrito now, but she was still asleep. And still adorable.

And had some hair that he had to fix. He crouches down to see if it’s out of place again, just to be met with a Terezi waking up.

She shifts around and mumbles as she slowly starts to wake up. After a little bit of squirming in the sheets and yawning, she smiles tiredly at Karkat. “Hehehe… Your hair’s still kind of dripping… I can hear it.” She yawns again, trying to stretch and failing. Alright, so maybe the cocoon was too tight.

Oh well.

She wiggles one of her arms free, rubbing at her eyes.

“D’ya feel better now?”

“Fuck yeah. Not at least you can smell me without having to deal with a layer of God damn dirt and grime that was clinging to my skin like a deformed fucking Koala bear or some shit like that.” Any kind of determination he had to fix her hair was gone. It left when she had woken up.

Still partially loopy from sleep, Terezi finds his miniature rant to be oddly amusing. So she giggles.

Then she sobers back up when she squirms around, trying to untangle herself from the sheets.

Stupid habit of wrapping herself up in her sleep. This was going to kill her one of these days.

And she didn’t even know where it came from!

Okay, so she knows, but she doesn’t like to go into it.

“You smelled good before Karkles. It was nothing but cherries. Hehehe, just like your apartment!” She sniffs to take in his scent, then lets out one of her proper cackles. Loud and raw, nothing like the girly giggles she’s been doing lately. “Alright, so we’ve talked to one of the neighbors… We did the banking records… The letters! Could those be traced? Wait, hang on, just give me your notes. I want to make sure I’ve got all this down.”

Her constant squirming ends when she lands on the ground, still completely tangled, a low and partially pained groan escaping. “Ow… Twice in one day… Same shoulder, too…”

Karkat facepalms, staring down at his ‘partner’. “Calm your shit. Let me get you of there first.” For the first time, he actually misses that annoying cackle of hers. With a small smile that he refuses to admit he’s wearing, he kneels beside her and starts to tug on the sheets, attempting to untangle her.

How the hell had she even managed to do this?! This was not normal!

“Well the guy didn’t just leave a return address on the notes. What an inconsiderate fuckass. It would have made everything so much easier.” May as well talk about the case while he tries to untangle her.

This was going to take forever.

“More like a genius murderer,” Terezi grumbles, squirming a bit and hoping to loosen herself a bit. It just makes things worse. “I don’t think your sheets like me. Mine never do this.”

She lets out a huff, giving up the struggle and just laying there, defeated. And it wasn’t just because of the sheets, either. This case was back to looking grim. Er. Grimmer.  
“Was there anything else we were planning on doing? That whole thing with that poor girl just completely threw me off…” Well, that wasn’t the WHOLE reason she couldn’t exactly think straight… Most of it was actually due to Karkat being… Well, whatever he was being right now.

It was a little more than a lot confusing.

Just the day before, he had been yelling at her and demanding that she leaves his office.

Now… Well, he was untangling her from his bed sheets after he had taken a shower.

“Oh come on. Even I could have thought of not including a return address. That part isn’t fucking rocket science.” He continues to tug on the sheets, getting more and more fed up with these things. “And I could call the office and see how the girl’s doing. That wouldn’t be that hard to pull- Jesus fuck, Terezi can I just fucking give up and leave you like this?!”

He growls down at the sheets, glaring and gripping them tightly. As if that was going to make them unwrap from her.

He was just as confused by the change as she was. Since when was it possible to get that attached to someone this quickly?! It didn’t seem FAIR.

Just as he was about to give up completely and go grab the scissors, the sheets came free and he was able to pry them off her. Good. So glaring DID work. He’d have to keep that in mind. The sheets get tossed to the other side of the room, where they’re unable to bother anyone.

Terezi stretches a little exaggeratedly, grinning like a happy child. It was nice to be free. “You’d be surprised by how many leave a return address. At least, in the group I tend to deal with. But yeah, I’d like to know how she’s doing…”

She frowns a little, then shakes herself and sits up, rubbing her sore shoulder gently. She felt extremely bad for leaving the poor girl there in that creepy apartment, but there wasn’t anything she could do. Staying was definitely out of the question, she couldn’t stand another second in there.

But at least they were able to check up on her. That was the least they could do.

“Hehehe, thanks, Karkles.” She nuzzles his cheek, then flicks her tongue against it affectionately. Then she pulls away for a little more stretching, standing just after. She was so done with floors. Floors and couches.

Karkat nods and pulls out his phone, deciding to ignore the small amount of saliva on his cheek. He’s getting used to it. Hell, it was… Nice? A little? He decided to see it as a display of affection.

Mainly because the only other option would be that she was going cannibal. That was not a nice thought.

He dials the office, ready to check in on the girl. What he gets… Is not something he wants to hear. Ever.

After the conversation that seemed to go on forever was over with, he hangs up. His hands are shaking a bit and he’s slowly paling. He feels queasy.

Too queasy.

Fuck.

FUCK.

How could he have been so fucking STUPID?!


	6. Chapter 6

”Karkat? What happened?” Sure, Terezi was blind. But that didn’t mean she couldn’t easily tell he was upset. His voice had progressively gotten more and more shaky throughout the phone call, and the air around him was tense, maybe a little sick feeling… Whatever had happened, it wasn’t good.

And it only took her a few more seconds for things to click for her. After all, she’s supposed to be an amazing detective. “He got her, didn’t he?” It’s difficult to keep the emotion out of her voice, but she manages it. Barely.

It’s still pretty obvious that she’s upset, though. And unsettled. “I had promised she’d be safe… that he wouldn’t get her… How could he have known we were there…?” That was really getting to her.

Karkat gulped, shoved his hands into his pockets, then took a deep breath. He had to tell her. It was a major screw-up on their part… She needed to know. “Terezi, they found video cameras in the apartment. The entire place was BUGGED. He killed her. He could have just taken the equipment out after, but he DIDN’T. I think he… WANTS us to know he saw it.”

Shit.

They were dead.

They were totally fucking dead.

This was it.

Terezi’s stomach drops, and she goes pale. “And she never noticed? He broke INTO her home and BUGGED the place, KILLED her friend, then KILLED her and LEFT THE BUGS?” That was just wrong. Just completely and utterly wrong.

But then again…

Slowly, a small and cruel grin takes over her face. They could use this.

“Well, I wonder what your techies can find out about them. Whether they were bought or home made, where the parts are from. His cockiness may just be what gets him caught.”

Her grin twitches, then it’s gone. She’s trying hard to fight back the fear, and she’s losing. “If we can get to him before he gets to us. This is a race against the clock, and the killer has started out steps ahead of us. If he’s as smart as he so obviously is, he already has my address. It’s on my website, my business cards, any of my advertising.” This was probably the first time she regrets having her apartment double as her office.

Karkat quickly catches onto her plan, nodding. “I have a friend. He’s kind of a shithead with a lisp, but he’s good with electronics.” The threat of death was way too real to him. He didn’t like it. Especially since most of the threat was directed at Terezi.

He wasn’t going to let something happen to her.

“You can’t go back there, Terezi. Not until this thing gets sorted away. He WILL fucking KILL YOU.”

Not feeling any better about all this, she shivers. Then wraps her arms around herself in the hopes of making herself feel safer.

It doesn’t work.

“I know that,” she grumbles, shooting him a glare. “You make it sound like I don’t know this business.” Of course, she had never been on THIS side of it. But she knew how it worked.

In a weak attempt to get rid of the goosebumps, she rubs her upper arms. “Go ahead and call up your friend. We need this done ASAP.” Even though her life is in serious danger, she can’t help but think about the plush dragons littering her apartment.

She hopes he doesn’t do anything to them. She grew up with her scalemates.

“You’re staying here.” He wasn’t asking. He was stating. It was already decided.

Terezi Pyrope was staying at his place, and she wasn’t getting a choice. He was NOT going to lose her to some asshole serial killer with a batch of hidden cameras. They were going to catch this fuck.

They had to.

“Hehehe, thanks, Karkles.” She offers a small smile now and pecks his cheek, figuring a mood lift was in order. “I probably would’ve had to go to Dave. I’m not too close with anyone else. Now go call up this lispy friend of yours.” She smiles more, nudging his cheek with her nose. “I’m gonna go familiarize myself with your fridge.”  
Her smile splits into a grin, and she rubs her stomach. Jeesh, she was actually pretty hungry.

Or was that the fear still gnawing at her?

Karkat’s response is to just mutter something along the lines of ‘yeah, whatever.’ His thoughts always got all muddled when he felt her lips. It was completely idiotic, he knew that, but it always happens.

The only thing he was completely sure of right now was that he’s been spending a lot more time on the phone than he’d like. Especially since calls were only ever for bad things. At least, in his experience. And all of this was just strengthening that theory.

Then again, this was Sollux. The conversation probably wasn’t going to be that long. It’d be annoying and irritating, but it wouldn’t last long.

“Ah, what the hell. Why the fuck not.” He shooed Terezi off to go raid his fridge, dialing Sollux and waiting for him to pick up.

This was definitely going to be interesting.

Terezi was happily sniffing around his kitchen, her nose twitching as she hunted for anything that piqued her interest. She hoped onto the counter and started to pull things with a good scent down, lining things up on his counter as she went on. 

It ranged from pure junk to bright red apples, with everything and anything in between add in.

To her, the combination wasn’t weird. It was delicious.

Karkat’s conversation had gone better than expected. Maybe things were actually starting to get better?

Hah, who was he kidding? They were still going to fucking die.

He slips his phone back into his pocket and go to peek into his kitchen. “Terezi what the hell are you doing with my food?”

What was this assortment even supposed to BE? Was there a theme here or was she just piling random food and making a food fort out of it?

“Hehehe, I’m picking out the food that smells the best!” She lets loose a cackle, tossing something random from the pile at him. “Isn’t it all delicious?!” She hops off the counter and plucks up a red apple, running her tongue along the skin before biting into it.

“How went the phone call?” She sounds a little garbled from the bits of apple in her mouth, but she’s still understandable.

“That is the fucking weirdest thing I have ever seen anyone do.” He shakes his head and grumbles, placing the box of Oreos back in the cabinet. “It went fine. He only made me want to jump out of a building twice. But yeah, he’s looking at the thing.”

“Great!” Terezi grins wider and finishes off the apple, tossing it into his trashcan and trying to focus on his mysterious friend and the bugs.

And not the fact that the person she promised to protect was dead and that they’re now both in a killer’s crosshairs. “Also…” Yeah, that had failed pretty miserably. “I’d suggest calling the police station and letting them know that the killer knows who you are. It’s likely he’ll try something either at the station or try to hack into the system to get your information. That would be pretty bad.” Even though she was the one in the most danger, she still wanted him to stay safe.

“Oh FUCK no.” He crosses his arms, narrowing his eyes. “I’d be taken off the case, possibly even relocated for a bit. They can’t know about this. Got it?! It’s me and you here against this asshole.” Not only was being taken off a case a huge fucking disgrace, but he knew Terezi would be too stubborn to back down. She’d keep going with this case on her own, in even more danger than before.

No way in fuck was he going to leave her alone with this.

She glares at him, good mood and hunger pushed aside for the moment. “A little hurt to your pride won’t be too ad! Would you rather them find out by having to show up DEAD?” Yeah, she was probably being more dramatic than she should, but she didn’t want him hurt. Ever.

“You don’t GET IT. I have administration to deal with. They won’t let me work with you on this anymore, there’s all that safety is top priority bullshit. I’m NOT telling them shit about this, Pyrope.” He matches her glare with his own, unwilling to back down.

“Then give me a good reason to not tell them myself.” She hops up and seats herself on his counter, tapping the backs of her feet against the bottom cabinets in a steady rhythm. It helped her blow off a little bit of steam. “My first priority is making sure this psycho doesn’t find out about you. It’s a little too late to keep him from knowing my stuff, but not yours.”

Watch it, Pyrope… This could get close to him finding out.

Karkat stepped towards her, his glare softening into something more worried. “Which is why I have to STAY. Because he KNOWS about you. Holy shit, Terezi, if something happened to you, I’d…” He didn’t finish the sentence.

He didn’t WANT to finish the sentence or even think about that in general.

“Oh.” The blind girl loses any sign of anger or annoyance, sliding off his counter and going over to him. For a second, it seems like she’s about to hug him, then she changes her mind and licks his cheek softly. “You don’t need to worry about me, Karkles, I’m a big girl.” She offers a small, hopefully comforting smile. He was worried about her? Legitimately worried? The thought made her a little happy.

He watches her for a while, frowning a little and not bothering to wipe the spit from his cheek. “You’re not getting rid of me this easily, Pyrope. I’m not leaving you here. So just take that idea and throw it the fuck away.”

“Alright, alright. The station stays uninformed, alright?” She places a quick kiss to his cheek this time, giving him a small, genuine smile. Yeah, those were definitely butterflies making a home in your stomach. Even when being a stubborn grouch, he could find a way to sound sweet.

He flushed lightly, staring at her. That smile. Fuck, she had the best smile in existence. While staring at her, he catches sight of something.

That fucking piece of hair was back.

He would do it this time. He had to do it. HAD to.

Gently, he lifted his hand back up to the side of her cheek, before finally brushing the little piece of hair back behind her ear.

Yes.

YES.

OPERATION WAS A SUCCESS.

FUCK YES.

Okay Karkat calm your ass down it was just a strand of hair.

Terezi was completely stiff, a small tingle going through her when his hand brushes against her cheek. Had he… Just done that to fix her hair? Was that really it? Come on, Pyrope, breathe! He probably just had some really weird OCD about hair!

“D-Did this friend of yours say about how long this would take…?”

His inward celebrations are interrupted by her question, but he isn’t too upset about that. It was a stupid thing to get all excited about, anyways. Seriously. It was just some hair.

“He said he’ll call us, it’ll take him a few hours and not much longer, he’s pretty damn good with this stuff.” It was then that he realized just how close he was to her.  
He had NOT planned this far ahead.

“Good! But what’ll we do in the mean time?” She debates stepping away from him, since this probably wasn’t a position two partners would be in, but she kinds of likes his warmth… Okay, not kind of. She really, really likes his warmth.

It’s comforting. And she didn’t want this to end.

Karkat gives a little shrug, not to sure. “It won’t be that difficult to think of SOMETHING.” He absentmindedly brought his hand back up to her hair, slowly running his fingers through it.

Her hair was really, really soft.

She stiffens again at the sudden display of… Affection? Could she call it that? Whatever it was, it was making her blush. “Y-You know… It sounds like you’re suggesting something kind of…” Her face heats up more and she stops talking, not wanting to go any farther than that.

Instead she focuses on how gentle he seems to be with his hand. Maybe he doesn’t know he’s doing it? After all, he’s being so oddly soft… Or maybe he really does have a mushy center?

“Huh? What?” He raises an eyebrow at her, continuing to bring his fingers through her hair. It was nice. “Get to the point, Pyrope.”

“Your hand. It’s in my hair. And you had just started saying that it wouldn’t be difficult to think of something to do while we wait for your friend… The timing’s kind of… Making things seem a little awkward…”

But really, really pleasant. No, bad PI! Come on, Pyrope, head straight! Stop rambling!

Terezi takes a few breaths to steady herself but doesn’t say anything more, instead tilting her head ever so slightly to be in his touch.

“Well I could get it OUT of your hair if you wanted.” Hopefully she would say no. He REALLY wanted her to say no. His fingers were right at home in her hair.

She digs her teeth into her lip, looking down in embarrassment, her face a bright enough red to match her hair. “I-It’s kind of nice… I don’t mind if you keep it there…” Come on, pull yourself together! Stop being such a teenage girl, getting all embarrassed just because some guy is touching your hair!

While Terezi was having issues with that, Karkat was battling a voice inside her head that was telling him to kiss her. Constantly. ‘Do it do it do it do it do it KISS HER.’

Not listening to the insistent voice, he just awkwardly stood there, with one hand in her hair and the other lazily at his side. That was about it.

Why did he ever think this would be a good idea?

After a little, Terezi reaches up to gently pat his hand. “You know, you aren’t supposed to just have it sit there. You’re supposed to move it. Like this.” Pushing aside her nerves, she takes his hand, slowly bringing it through her hair a few times.

Fuck. Now he’s the one blushing. He knew this shit! Why hadn’t he done this on his own?!

Whatever. He began to pet her hair, hoping he was doing it properly. If he messed this up, he was going to curl up in his office and rot.

She lets loose a cackle, feeling more like her usual self when the scent of his blush hits her nose. Of course she’s still blushing like mad, but she isn’t feeling nearly as awkward anymore. “Hehehe, your hand’s really warm, Karkles. Almost as warm as your face is red.”

He rolls his eyes and grumbles, “Hypocrite,” under his breath. Like she was one to talk about being red! Adjusting himself to be a little closer to her, Karkat was beginning to consider listening to his subconscious now.

Especially considering that one of them could be fucking KILLED at any given point in time. It was pretty much now or never.

Terezi’s blush darkens, and she has to fight to keep her composure. Or at least to not pull him down and lay one on him right now. Her teeth dug into her lip more. “I’m not the one who’s Sheriff and goes around without a seatbelt…”

Okay, yeah, that was lame. But she had to use SOMETHING to get her mind off of whether or not his kiss would taste like cherry candy.

He would have face-palmed, but his other hand was too busy wrapping itself around Terezi’s waist.

Wait what? No. No no no. NO. Bad hand, stop that!

Fuck.

Too late.

His arm is now securely around her waist, firm enough to make it known it’s there but gentle enough so that she could move away if she wanted.

“Shit. You caught me. I can’t even fucking defend myself with that one. Good job, Pyrope.” Well, at least he didn’t sound nearly as embarrassed or nervous as he felt.

She makes a small, pathetic noise when she feels his arm moving to be around her. “K-Karkat? What are you up to…?” Her voice is smaller, more nervous. Damnit, Pyrope! Pull yourself together! You know DAMN WELL what’s going on!

Suddenly, he did it. Karkat fucking Vantas did it. He leaned in and kissed her. How the hell he had managed to work up the courage for this without even THINKING about it, he’ll probably never know.

All he knew was that it felt good. Her lips were surprisingly cool and soft.

Her eyes widen at first, then they kind of droop, before shutting completely. She kisses him back, his over-heated and slightly chapped lips feeling oddly pleasant. Very pleasant. Less oddly and more very.

After a few seconds, she pulls away, a soft giggle escaping. Yeah, that was definitely cherry cand flavored.

“Did I taste good?” It was an extremely stupid question, but it was all Karkat could think to say. He was just happy she hadn’t decked him in the face for kissing her out of nowhere like that.

Maybe he could get away with doing it again some other time?

“Of course!” She sounds surprised, wondering why he even felt the need to ask. Maybe she’s giving him a look like she hadn’t enjoyed it…? In which case, he was wrong. Very wrong. Extremely wrong. “You tasted like cherry flavored candies…” She gently bites her lip again, resisting the urge to lick his taste from her lips.

That would probably look really bad.

Karkat leans in again, brushing his lips against hers. Soft and light and barely there. He’s never had much practice in the romantic world, and he was still trying to figure out what the deal with was it. How much could he get away with before he crossed a line and she punched him in the face? It was an important question.

Terezi leans in the rest of the way, to make it a proper kiss. If his lips were going to be that close to her, they may as well be against her. She brings a hand to rest on his cheek, smiling softly. She’s just like Karkat – no experience in romance at all.

She pulls away again, her hand still on his cheek and her forehead pressing against his, still smiling, for once staying quiet.

He was about to say something, ANYTHING, to break the silence. It was starting to get a little uncomfortable. For him, at least. He didn’t know whether to kiss her again or somewhere else. Or whether he was supposed to say something. Or pull away.

Thankfully, his phone makes the decision for him by going off. He untangles himself from the blind PI and pulls it out, turning to be facing away. He didn’t want her sniffing at his blush. Especially not while he was still trying to figure out what all that had been.

He knew he was the one that started it, but… Holy fuck had that even been REAL? Or was he just daydreaming? Okay no, that was absurd. That was definitely a kiss. From Terezi Pyrope.

Well, it was official. His little crush on her wasn’t a little crush anymore. It had evolved into head over fucking heels in love.

She bites her lip when he turns away, taking a few steps away to give him privacy, her tongue flicking out to get a better taste of his sweetness as she does. Then she does a small ‘happy dance’. It was really just a little full-body wiggle and a large, idiotic grin.

Oh God, hopefully he wasn’t looking over here. That would probably kill whatever it was that he felt for her.

Okay, no, she was SURE it would kill whatever feelings he had.

After a couple seconds of nervous shifting on her feet, she snatches something from the pile of random food she had made and starts to eat it.

Looks like her nervous eating habit was back.

Hanging up the phone, Karkat turns back around to look at her a little oddly, deciding to ignore the fact that she was gorging herself on crackers. She had mentioned she was hungry earlier, hadn’t she?

“Someone left something on my desk at the station. It was addressed to you.” The sarcastic part of his mind wonders who would leave something like that.

Oh yeah.

There’s a fucking murderer after them.

“Hmm… Well, it couldn’t hurt to read it. Let’s go get it.” She grins, setting down the bag of half-empty bag of crackers. She was definitely starting to feel better about this. ‘This’ meaning whatever her and the Sheriff were becoming and the murder case they were on.

This guy was starting to get too cocky for his own good.

“And also, Karkles?” She goes up to him, pecks his cheek, then continues on past him. “We’ll talk later about our little ‘moment’.”

“Okay. Later.” Later was good. Right? Yeah. It was.

Later hypothesized that they WEREN’T going to die in the next thirty minutes. Or hour. Or however long it took for them to get the letter and then get back here.

Which probably was a lot closer to half an hour, since it was really only a seven minute drive from his apartment to the police station.


	7. Chapter 7

Terezi spends the entire ride going from one thought to another – each pertaining to Karkat and how she couldn’t seem to get enough of him. Occasionally the killer decided to make an appearance. But she usually tried to avoid those.

As soon as they got to the station’s parking lot, she was out of the car and walking with purpose into the station. Her nose was immediately setting to work, sniffing and searching for anything that wasn’t normally there.

Karkat stayed leaning against his car for a while, watching as she strutted into the police station. She acted as though she OWNED the place. He rolls his eyes and locks his car, going after her.

God did he love her.

When he got to his office, she was already perched on his desk, nose pressed to the letter. She glances up when he comes inside, her eyebrows knit in confusion. “Is this what I think it is? Did this guy REALLY just send a letter saying he wants to formally confess?” She holds the letter out for him, her mind now cluttered with thoughts of potential sloppy make-outs and serial killers.

That was a really bad combination.

Fuck.

Okay, Pyrope, focus! Killers first!

“Wait what?!” He snatches the letter from her, skimming the page as he goes on. “Is this guy an idiot?! What the hell was he thinking?!”

The private detective rolls her eyes and leans back on his desk, her mind more organized now that she had managed to push back her hormones. “Read it, genius. His plan is obvious.” Well, not if half your mind is in the gutter. “He ambushes. Because if you read his little P.S., it states that I go alone. Without backup and completely unarmed.”

She pauses, debating. But only for a second. “He wants a PI? Alright, he’ll get a PI. I’ll bite.”

“Terezi are you CRAZY?! He’s going to KILL you!” He grits his teeth, doing his best to NOT crumple the paper. They needed this intact. Maybe.

Either way, he was NOT going to let this happen. NO. Sure, he might be a little overprotective of her, but he DID NOT CARE. He gave no fucks at all. Having to plan a funeral for a stubborn blind girl was not on his to-do list.

Said stubborn blind girl scowls, slightly annoyed. “Karkat, you’re an officer. You should understand that everything comes with risks. Besides, it’s not like I’m REALLY going unarmed. I always keep a few weapons on me. Blades, mainly. I’m not much a fan of guns.” Mainly because it was easier for a blind girl to aim with a knife than with a pistol.

She loved how much he cared and how much he didn’t want her hurt. But this was something that had to happen.

They didn’t know anything else. They had no other leads.

This was their best bet.

He clenched his fists, making his ears ring with how tightly clamped his jaw was. God DAMNIT she was right. Why did she have to be right all the time?! Especially when it came to things like THIS.

The hot blooded Sheriff took a few seconds to remember who he was talking to.

This was Terezi Pyrope. The girl who had managed to become a private detective despite having no sight. She’d be okay on her own.

“I swear to God, Pyrope, if you die I’m going to be pissed.” Great speech there. Way to motivate her, dumbass.

“Hehehe.” Her hand finds his shoulder, then it trails up his neck, making sure he’s facing her. Then she leans forward and presses a soft kiss to his lips, glad she had managed to hit the mark. “I’ll be fine. After all, I can’t piss the Sheriff off, now can I?”

He was still grumbling about various things, but the kiss had seemed to calm him down easily enough. At least he wasn’t raging anymore.

“There’s some way you could prepare for this, right? And I know he said no backup but that shit’s important.”

“You made that a little difficult. Backup, I mean. You’re pretty much all I’ve got on this case. And, to be honest, that isn’t very much.” She wasn’t trying to insult him, it was just true. He was only one guy. “How much time until the meet up? Tonight? Tomorrow? In a week?” He hadn’t given her very much time to read the letter.

He glances back down at the letter, having skipped over that on accident. “He wants to do it tonight.” Shit, tonight? They had to figure this out, and they had to do it fast.

“Tonight?!” The word comes out as more of a squeak, and Terezi clears her throat, doing her best to not show how absolutely terrified she was.

Breathe, Pyrope. Just breathe.

“Is there any chance to change it? Contact him back saying to push it to tomorrow?”

Karkat did not look amused by that question. “How the fuck are we supposed to do THAT?! We can handle this on our own. We just need to plan something.”

Despite those words, he couldn’t get rid of a sinking feeling in his gut. Part of him knew that tonight wasn’t going to end well. She was going to die. She was going to get shot or stabbed or beaten to death and he wasn’t going to be able to do anything.

It was completely reasonable to think that kind of thing though, right? This guy was dangerous. He had already proved that. He was also SMART. Very smart.

Then again, so was Terezi.

It was going to be a close call, but close calls were not nearly good enough. It made things unpredictable.

“We could always rig the place. Play him at his own damn game.”

Terezi was brought back to reality and out of her world of nightmares, a wide grin slowly spreading across her face as what he said sank in. “Hehehe, Karkles! You’re a genius!” She licks his cheek, her grin only getting bigger. “Let’s bug the place! And you can be sitting somewhere safe, waiting just in case I need a knight.”

Of course, it couldn’t be anywhere obvious. The bugs had to be well hidden, just like Karkat. Otherwise everything would go to shit and both of them would end up dead.

That was not an ending she liked.

He nods at her suggestion, pretending as though he doesn’t feel the slight up-turn of his lips. Maybe this WAS going to work. And seeing her excited about something definitely helped to lift his sullen mood. “We should do that as soon as possible, to make sure we don’t meet him while trying to set this up.”

A small squeal of delight comes from the PI, and she does a wiggle of happiness, still seated on his desk. She could ‘see’ everything starting to come together. Well, kind of.

She was forcing a bit of her excitement in the hopes of getting rid of the fear that was snacking on her nerves.

But of course, fear eventually won out. Instead of scenarios of them capturing the criminal in various ways, it was reversed. Various scenarios of them being captured ran through her mind, complete with them dying and the multiple different ways he could possibly pull that off.

She does her best to push that away, not wanting to upset Karkat with it.

His hatred towards the ideas was turning into a nervous buzz. They were getting a chance to make an arrest. The case was almost over. It was make it or break it. Then again…

If the case ended, so would his partnership with Terezi. His heart sank a little at the thought.

Fuck.

They wouldn’t be seeing each other as much, if at all. Eventually they’d start to drift apart… And then anger and resentment would start. He’d be so frustrated about never getting to see her, he’d say something he didn’t mean when he finally DID get to see her.

Then things would just go down from there.

Karkat shook the thoughts out of his head. Things didn’t always have to end like that.

It could always end with one of them dying instead.

God fucking DAMNIT. Get your shit together and SNAP OUT OF IT! That wasn’t going to happen! You were NOT going to LET THAT HAPPEN.

He doubted his own mental screaming. If anything, it would be his own stupid fault he loses her. Him and his short temper and his dumb ideas would be the reason he loses Terezi.

Suddenly, he seemed to realize the real reason he was not looking forward to tonight.

Whether or not they won tonight, he’d be losing her. Literally or figuratively.

Terezi and her maniacal giggle. The way she slept curled up in a as small of a ball as she could make herself. How she always teased him about his blushing, even though she couldn’t even see it. The way her hair was adorably fucked up when she woke up. The way she licked his cheek when he had done something good. How perfect it felt to have her nestled in his arms. He’d even miss how she could shut him up when he was being an idiot with that damned cane.

Fuck.

There was no denying it.

He loved her. More than anything else. Hell, he loved her more than he hated himself.

Okay, that was a bit of a stretch. It was a tie right there.

But still. That’s a lot of love considering how much he absolutely fucking LOATHES himself.

He loved her, and everything was pretty much ending tonight.

“You know you’re not getting rid of me even after this, right? It doesn’t matter how this ends, you’re stuck with me, one way or another.” Terezi had sobered up from her fear enough to realize there was something wrong with him. He smelled… Off. She couldn’t quite place it, but he was definitely upset about something.

No matter how much she wanted to, she knew she couldn’t say anything. He’d probably deny it.

And they had a meet-up to plan.

Even though she tried, her words didn’t make him feel any better about tonight. But it did alert him to the fact that she knew something was up.

Okay, Karkat. Don’t be fuck-up and don’t make her worry. She’s already got enough on her mind, she shouldn’t be having to deal with anything else.

He eyes her worried expression, then straightens out and shoots her an extremely faked annoyed look. “Come on, Pyrope. Of course I know that. Getting rid of you is near impossible.

“Fuck. If anything, I’m worried that he may have me beat on who prepared a better date. His little get together idea is sure to hell a whole fuck-load more exciting than chicken nuggets.”

God damnit, why did he have to mention the chicken nugget ‘date’? Not only did that upset him more, it also made him realize just how hungry he was.

Pushing aside the worry for her partner, Terezi lets out a cackle. “Then you can just take me on an even better one after this is over and done with!”

She makes it sound as though it’s simple. Put the bugs around the meeting place, meet with the criminal, catch the criminal, then go on a proper date. Even though she knew it wouldn’t be that easy, it was nice to think of it like that.

At least, for a few seconds. A detective living in a dream world doesn’t get to live for very long at all.

But the date really would be nice. Of course, she first had to survive her encounter with the criminal. Then work up the courage to do a proper confession to him. Because she wasn’t too sure if their little moment back at his place had counted as a ‘confession’ or just ‘holy fucking shit we’re going to die’.

Hopefully the first one.

Okay, she’s pretty much lost her train of thought.

“Yeah, sure. Of course.” Well, at least there was SOMETHING for him to look forwards to now. He was definitely going to need it.

Somewhere along the way, they had managed to get to their destination. Terezi may remember the chain of events that led to this, but Karkat had been too absorbed in his thoughts to even remember leaving his office.

Fuck it was a good thing he was used to driving on autopilot. They were lucky to have no gotten in a wreck.

But holy hell this place was CREEPY.

Just as creeped out as Karkat, Terezi slowly slides out of the car. She did not get a good feeling from this place. The look of it would probably terrify her even more.  
“Well, if he’s aiming to make me feel uncomfortable, he’s managing it.” She does her best to keep her tone light and joking, but there’s still the underlying ‘holy shit there’s no way I’m living’ to it.

Slowly and carefully, as if expecting there to be a booby trap, the blind girl wanders the area, her cane sliding along the ground and walls. But she makes sure to stay near Karkat, not wanting to leave his side until she absolutely HAD to. Sure, it could be considered clingy, but she didn’t really care.

She was absolutely terrified.

Karkat was too busy with dealing with the bag of bugging equipment to really notice how freaked out she was getting. He must’ve grabbed the thing before they left.  
The fact that he was so functional when he didn’t even know what was going on kind of freaked him out a little. But hey, maybe he could use this to his advantage.

Somehow.

He’ll figure that out after all this shit is over and done with.

“Think he knows about your… Uh… Condition?” Well, how else was he supposed to phrase it? He couldn’t say BLINDNESS, she’d respond with her snarky-ass ‘But I can see!’ like always.

“If he heard the last bit of the conversation… Then yes. Which means he’d try using that to his advantage.” At first, she’s feeling even more nervous. Then a grin slowly spreads on her face. “Which means I get the advantage! Nobody can sneak up on the blind PI!”

Except for maybe a Sheriff determined to carry her.

No! Bad Pyrope! Focus!

“So you don’t think he knows about… Whatever you’ve got going on there with your nose?” Karkat was busy looking for discreet places to hide the cameras, stealing quick glances back at her. Not long enough to get a good look at her to determine how she was feeling, but just enough to make sure she was still THERE.  
He really didn’t want to lose her.

“Tell me if any of these smell too obvious.” He was still worried as fuck, hence the glances, but discussing their plans made him feel better. Like they had shit under lock and key.

It also kept him from turning into a mushy pile of sob at the thought of losing her.

He’s brought back when he hears the tapping of her cane, and she sniffs along the perimeter of the area, eyebrows knit. “I don’t think he’d know… About the nose thing. I mean, I don’t think I was being too obvious about sniffing around? I hope I wasn’t. I don’t really like it when people start questioning about the way I see.” Of course, if the girl they had talked to hadn’t noticed until the very end… Then it must not be too obvious?

Thinking of her made Terezi want to cry, so she quickly shook the thoughts from her mind and trailed close behind Karkat.

Sure, she may be a little too close, but she didn’t care too much. Being this close to him made her feel better.

“Yeah, what’s up with that anyway? Is it some weird genetic thing or did you just fucking wake up one day and say ‘I think I’m going to smell colors today’? Or is it like an actual medical thing?” He kept an eye on her, falling to step beside her, matching pace with her.

This was better.

She shoots him a quick scowl, knocking at his shin with her cane. Harsh enough to be noticed but gentle enough to not seriously hurt. Maybe just sting. “Way to listen, dumbass. I said I DIDN’T like to be questioned about that. But since you asked, there’s no point in NOT telling you. Especially since…” She trails off, really not wanting to think about what she was going to say after that.

The thought of dying tonight was utterly terrifying.

“Anyways, it’s kind of all three. Hehehe, complicated, right? I’ve always had a good sense of smell, even before I lost my sight. Well, you know how when you lose one sense, all your others enhance? My blindness made my nose extra sharp. But I didn’t really learn to see with smells until a few months after the incident. I guess one morning I finally had enough of being ‘that blind girl,’ so I decided to put my awesome sniffing skills to use! It was tough, but totally worth it.” Her scowl had turned into a wide, proud grin.

Thinking about how she had managed to go from a black world to a colorfully scented world always managed to cheer her up.

She often used it as a tactic to cheer up after a client decided to withdraw their case from her based on the fact that she was blind. Usually they came back to her, practically begging, but it still hurt when they first mentioned it.

After a quick peek into the electronics bag to see what all was left (it wasn’t much), Karkat keeps his eyes on her. She… Really was amazing.

Holy shit.

“Y’know, I don’t even think half the people down at the police station know you’re blind.”

A small smile tugged the corners of his mouth, his entire face seeming to soften a bit. Something about her looking so fucking pleased with herself... It made him feel just a tiny bit happy.

“They’re scared fucking shitless of you, though. It’s hilarious.” Of course, she scared the living shit out of him, too, but he decided to leave that out. He figured she knew that already.

But there was something that he’s always been curious about… May as well ask her while they still had time and were still doing ‘story time’. “You know, you never told me how you went blind in the first place.”

Terezi’s grin, which had grown more when he mentioned how scared she made the cops, instantly disappeared. “I’m not a fan of the story. I usually don’t tell anyone. Dave never even knew.” She lets out a soft sigh, slumping a little. Then she pulls herself upright and sniffs some more to make sure they were still alone.

Hopefully they had time for this.

And hopefully she could make it so that she didn’t give him the full thing.

“It was back when I was still a kid – long time ago, when I was nine or ten. I had this friend… She was a pretty good friend, like a sister. But she had issues… I didn’t stick around to hear the diagnosis on her psyche. She… She flipped one day.”

Her face darkens, a frown slowly taking over. “One of our friends was killed. Another paralyzed from the waist down. I don’t know what happened after he went to rehab to learn to cope… He pretty much disappeared.”

She’s careful to end it on him, not wanting to get into what SPECIFICALLY had happened to her eyes. Some things were better left in the past.

“So she killed them and did something to you.” Karkat may be an idiot, but in this case, it wasn’t all too difficult to read between the lines.

“Her. She only killed Aradia. Tavros got off free. Sort of.” Thinking about the two friends made her frown more. She always forgets how messed up her past is. “I’ll have to look him up one day… Check on how he’s doing…” In an attempt to take her mind off her paralyzed friend, she physically shakes herself.

Getting depressed right now wouldn’t be good.

“So! Now that that’s out of the way… Anything else left?”

Karkat scowls just a little, knowing she had purposefully avoided the topic of her eyes and what exactly had happened to them. But it wasn’t too important. At least, not out of everything else going on.

He’ll find out eventually. Because she wasn’t going to be dying.

“Other than us getting the fuck out of here before he shows up? No. We’re done.” He glances around again, checking to make sure everything was in place and that the cameras were out of sight.

Shit.

This was seriously happening.

The preparation had taken his mind off it for the moment, but now it made it more real than ever.

Terezi slowly nods, her stomach knotting up and nausea taking over. “Where should we go until the meet up time…? Are you gonna try to squeeze in a not-shitty date?” She attempts to tease him, hoping it’ll lighten the mood and get rid of the increasing queasiness she was feeling.

“Depends, do we actually have to get all dressed up and shit?” He made a face, not really liking the idea of having to get fancy. It’d take him a hell of a lot of work to NOT look like he had just fallen out of an airplane. Way more work than he was willing to do.

Feeling a bit better, she laughs and licks his cheek. Of course the nerves were still there, but she pushed them aside to enjoy this. “Our first date was fast-food chicken nuggets and a murder case. I think anything is better than that. So, no, you don’t have to. We’ll save our dressy date for after this is over.”

Grinning wide, she licks him again. It was comforting to think of something like that. A nice, fancy and proper date. After this bastard was caught and behind bars.  
“Fuck it. Let’s just wait then.”

He hadn’t meant for the next part to be said aloud, but of course his mouth did it anyways. “A date now would feel like eating your last meal. And for fuck’s sake, I swear that is NOT. What’s going to be.”

Yep, that had pushed her over the edge. She hugs herself tightly, any semblance of a good mood gone, her hands tightly gripping her upper arms in an attempt to warm herself up. She felt very, very cold.

And very, very scared.

“Y-Yeah… It would, wouldn’t it…?” She bites her lip, doing her best to keep from thinking about that. “But if we’re going to wait here, you can’t be in sight. Neither of us can, otherwise he’d get suspicious.”

He hadn’t meant to scare her.

Fuck.

He really hadn’t been going for that. He couldn’t keep himself from saying it, though. FUCK he hated himself.

Karkat desperately wanted something, ANYTHING to say to comfort her. To make it better. To make her forget her fear.

But at this point, he’d just make everything worse. He didn’t have a way with words like her. He didn’t have a way with ANYTHING except pissing people off.

He didn’t want to leave her alone though. Not yet. It was too early.

Instead of trying to make himself sound like anything but an ass, he hugs Terezi tightly, pulling her against him. This place was cold. Too cold and isolated. It wasn’t safe for her to be here, he KNEW that.

“I don’t want you to go, Karkles…” She lets out a soft sigh, her arms slowly going around him as she hugs him back. Her head goes to rest on his shoulder, and another sigh slips out. “I don’t want to go…”

Showing weakness like this wasn’t something that she did. Opening up in GENERAL wasn’t something that she did. The only thing she ever usually showed was her professional face. That or the grin and hyper activeness she seemed to be known for best.

But with him, she was comfortable. Safe. It felt like no matter what happened, he was going to be right there. Knowing that was definitely enough to keep her from having a panic attack.

It was extremely odd for Karkat to see her like this. The strong and stubborn Private Detective, clinging to him as if he was the only thing keeping her from dying. It suddenly occurred to him that she has probably never dealt with something like this before.

She DID mention that this was her first serial killer, right? Fuck.

As much as he wanted to grab her and take her away, it wasn’t an option. They HAD to do this. SHE had to do this.

So he relaxes his grip on her, taking a step back.

She responds with a pout, instantly against him again. Without saying a word, she wraps her arms back around him. To keep him from going anywhere, she digs her nails into the back of his sweater, but she’s careful to make sure she doesn’t actually scratch him.

That would kind of ruin whatever this moment was.

If it could be considered a moment.

Whatever this was, she didn’t want it to end. Because that would mean she’d be having to deal with the killer soon.

But he gently pries her off him, taking another step back and letting out a sigh. This was the exact opposite of what Karkat wanted. He wanted to hug her tightly and make everything better, not push her away. But he knew that if he didn’t do it now, he wouldn’t be able to do it at all.

“I’ll be watching though the cameras. We need a signal, for if you want your knight to swoop down in all of his fucking brilliant glory and beat the shit out of this guy.”

As much as Terezi wanted to go back to clinging to him, he had already pushed her away twice. She didn’t want to push her luck.

“Hehehe, good idea. Even though I’m sure he’d know when to save his blind girl.” Now grinning, she pecks his cheek. “How about a certain cane pattern? Like four taps, a pause, one tap, pause, then three?”

She demonstrates her idea on the ground, each tap of the cane resonating cold and harsh, like a gavel. It sent shivers through her.

The taps did the same thing to Karkat. Fuck her cane sounded creepy in here. Hell, most everything here was turned creepy by this place.

“Of course he would know. He’d be a pretty shitty fuckass of a knight if he didn’t. If shit gets too bad though, fuck the code. I’m coming down here.” There was nothing she could say that would convince him not to.

He was NOT losing her.

“Hehehe, I wouldn’t expect anything different from you.” She kisses his cheek again, then a few more times, deciding to show as much affection as she could just in case. It couldn’t hurt to be on the safe side, right?

“How much longer? I don’t want him to see us.”

“Not much longer,” he mumbled, cheeks taking on a light pink. No matter how many times she does adorable shit like that, he was always going to react like this. There was no getting around it.

There was a slight hesitation, then he kisses her full on the lips. It was rushed; so rushed he almost missed her lips. He could hear his heart pounding and was fairly certain she could, too.

Fuck, it was so dangerous to be doing this now. The killer could literally be coming any second now. And yet here they were, doing this. Why NOW?

He decided to ignore the voice screaming his stupidity at him and kissed her again. More force went into this one, more urgency. And a whole fuckton of ‘I really fucking don’t want to leave you here right now’.

She lets herself kiss him back, just as hard and urgent as him. He tasted better than before, felt warmer than before. It was probably all of the adrenaline and fear being pumped into her veins. After a good minute or so, she finally pushes away from him, offering a small and slightly sheepish smile.

She hadn’t exactly meant to bite him, it had just kind of happened.

He stares at her, his face feeling a lot hotter than before. Had she seriously… BITTEN his lip? As much as it kind of stung, he had to admit it was also a little hot.

Thoughts of their kiss kept him from realizing the fact that he had to GET HIS ASS MOVING.

“Now go! Shoo! Come and find we when this is over, and we’ll talk, like I promised.” She doesn’t realize he isn’t listening until after she’s talked, and she rolls her eyes. Her embarrassed smile turns more into something like a smirk, and she kisses his nose.

Then his cheek.

Then his other cheek.

Then back to his nose.

She would keep doing that, but she’s finally back in control of her willpower and manages to keep herself from doing that.

“I’ll see you once this is over, Karkles.”

Why did this have to hurt so much? It wasn’t even a real good-bye! She was just-

She was just sending him off to watch her die. That was what she was doing. And she hated herself for it. Absolutely HATED.

But it was the only chance they had of catching this guy. They HAD to do this.

Reluctantly, taking one look back at Terezi, Karkat leaves the room. He hurries to his post, setting up his laptop so he could monitor what was going on. Good, they all worked. And he could faintly hear cars on the road, being echoed back by the microphones in the room. Everything was working.

He sat himself down on the ground, back against the wall and gun to his right. He was probably going to end up needing that.


	8. Chapter 8

As it turns out, leaving a Karkat alone in a room to watch his partner in one of the stupidest and most dangerous situations ever was a really bad idea. He wanted to go back there.

Unfortunately, that was an even worse idea than their current situation. He had enough common sense to know that much. It would put her in even more danger than she was already in if he was spotted immediately.

So he was forced to be content with watching her pace the room, eyes locked on her. He knew she was nervous, but she did a good job of not showing it. All except the pacing. That was a little obvious.

But the pacing ends soon enough. Terezi stops and takes a small, slightly shaky breath, going to lean up against a corner. Her hands rested on the top of her cane and her shades were pointed towards the door, making it look as though she was watching it.

To keep herself calm, she constantly reminds herself that Karkat was still there. He was watching. He was going to make sure nothing happened to her.

She feels pathetic thinking that to herself over and over again, that she needs to be constantly reminded, but it’s still comforting. And with the situation she was in, comfort was kind of a necessity. Not like she was going to be telling Karkat any of this. Maybe.

Who was she kidding? Of course she was going to.

As time continues to pass by, Karkat gets more and more antsy. Even though Terezi is as still as a statue and hasn’t cracked one bit, he’s still getting worried about her. No way that was a normal Terezi thing. It couldn’t be.

Besides, what was this guy up to? What was he playing at?! If he was trying to unnerve them, it was sure as hell working! Or, well, unnerve HER. He wasn’t even supposed to be here.

Shit. Maybe he knew? After paranoid glancing around, Karkat shakes himself and looks down at the screen, leaning a little. As if that would somehow make him able to reach out and touch her. Comfort her.

Fuck, she makes him such a sap.

Terezi was even more terrified than her ‘partner’ thought. She was nervous and anxious and really just wanted to get out. She felt extremely vulnerable, even though the spot she chose was the safest in the entire room. Sure, it was a corner, but it was the last place most people would look when walking into a room. So she had the advantage.

But it was really only a small comfort.

“Karkles…?”

The killer wasn’t around, right? It was safe to talk to him, right?

God she hoped so.

“I’m right here, Terezi,” he mumbles to himself, knowing full well she wouldn’t be able to hear his response. An earpiece would’ve been too obvious. Not like they had one, anyways.

Where the HELL was this guy at?

Karkat was really starting to get frustrated.

After several seconds of uncomfortable fidgeting, Terezi finally gives up. There’s no way she can suppress the fear bubbling up by standing still. So she paces. It’s faster and more patterned than before, a frown tugging on her lips.

What was this guy up to?

This wasn’t right.

There was something else going on. Something that they couldn’t see. She KNEW there was.

“If he doesn’t show up an hour after the designated time, he isn’t showing up at all.” It’d already been a while after he was supposed to show, but she couldn’t tell how long.

To her, it felt like hours. But it easily could’ve been minutes.

A quick glance to the corner of his screen tells Karkat that it’s been nearly an hour already. She probably didn’t know that though. And he couldn’t TELL her that either. But instead of heading down there, he waits it out. A few more seconds. Then he’d go.

It was an invitation, after all.

It only takes Terezi a few more seconds to decide that she doesn’t care if it’s been an hour yet or not, she wants out now. So, keeping to the code, she taps her cane against the wall four times.

Then she takes a few steps and taps the ground once.

A few more steps, then three to the door.

“I’ll be right there.” That was the code. He packs up faster than he thought possible and heads to go pick her up. Maybe it was still too early, but he didn’t care. He just wanted to get her out of there.

He wants her out. NOW.

The thought of him coming is enough to make Terezi patient. She stands near the door, then immediately tackles him once it opens. Her grin’s wide and laughter unrestrained as she almost pushes him to the ground. “Karkles! Hehehe!” She hadn’t realized how much she had missed him.

Sure, it wasn’t that long, only an hour, but when you think you’re about to die, time tends to do weird things.

Not expecting to get his ass attacked by the blind PI, Karkat only barely manages to keep his balance.

For a second. Just long enough for her to get out his name and that perfect laugh of hers.

Then they’re both on the ground, Karkat scowling up at her in mild annoyance.

But that lasts for just a second, before he realizes that she could have died but she didn’t. She’s alive. Alive and grinning at him and being adorable.

Holy shit, thank God.

The fall doesn’t phase Terezi; instead she sees it as fun. She squeals as they fall, and she immediately sets to kissing his face, her grin splitting her face. “Hehehe! I told you I’d be fine!”

She’s really using the Sheriff to focus on things other than the main issue, which was currently locked in a cage at the back of her mind. She’ll think about that later. When there wasn’t a grumpy cop to smooch on.

Said ‘grumpy cop’ was squirming and shifting underneath her, doing his best to not become a TOTAL sap about all of this. “No sto- What’re y- Cut it out that tickles!”

Yep. DEFINITELY alive.

Terezi cackles some more, then lets up on the kisses, instead settling down and resting her head on him, her grin becoming more of a soft smile. “I’m so glad you’re back… It was so lonely…” Lonely and quiet and nerve-wracking.

He just rolls his eyes at her, his arms finding their way around her anyways and pulling her against him. After kissing the top of her head, he brings up the topic that neither of them wanted to discuss but both knew had to be done. “So. What’s the deal with the no show? Think he was planning something?”

He really didn’t want to bring that up, but it was necessary.

“Hmm… There are several things it could be… But I think the most likely is that he knew about us bugging the area. Maybe he bugged it himself beforehand to make sure we didn’t?” That didn’t seem too likely. If he had bugged it, it would’ve had to be an excellent job for them to not find any of his devices. “Or he’s just trying to put us on edge… Make us nervous, make us slip up.”

That was a lot more likely. She didn’t want to think of that. Mainly because it was working.

Instead she decided to spend a few seconds focusing on just her Karkat and how odd it felt to be discussing a case like this while snuggled up in his arms. She’s probably going to have to get up eventually, but for right now, she doesn’t want to. She is perfectly content where she is.

Still somewhat tense and on edge, Karkat props himself up, leaning on his elbows. He presses another kiss to the top of her head, still really relieved that she was alive. “Well it sure to fuck seems to be working.” Thinking about the killer made him on edge, and one of his hands goes to the pistol holstered in his belt.

The thought of this place being bugged really got to him, too. That would mean the killer knew a hell of a lot more than he needed to know.

Including Terezi’s smell-o-vision. Fuck. He really shouldn’t have asked her about it.

Then there was always the lovely option of the killer being HERE and watching them. Waiting for them.

His entire body tenses, the hand on his gun gripping it properly. If that was the case, he wouldn’t hesitate to shoot the asshole. Not after stressing Terezi out like this.

It was one thing to arrange a date with a girl. But standing her up? Especially someone like Terezi? No. You just don’t do that. That was rude and a total jackass move.

Just like killing a defenseless woman who was already scared out of her mind.

Immediately noticing his tensing, Terezi moves her hand to be over the one gripping his gun. She places a soft kiss to his cheek, speaking softly. “If he was here, odds are he would have attacked before you came back. Relax, Karkles. He’s just trying to get to our heads. And if this place really is bugged as well, he’ll get more satisfaction from knowing it’s working.” In an attempt to help calm him down, she nuzzles his neck, hand still on his.

It was also for her benefit as well. She didn’t want to think about this kind of thing. She wanted to forget logic for a while and enjoy life. The fact that she wasn’t dead.

But of course, that wasn’t an option. The murderer was still out there, and that wasn’t going away until they put him away. “We need to find this guy.” With a soft sigh, she pushes herself up, holding a hand out for him. “Come on.”

Karkat didn’t want to get up. He really didn’t. He wanted to lie there with Terezi in his arms just as much as he hoped she wanted to. But of course she was right – when isn’t she? – so he grabbed her hand and pulled himself up.

Finding this guy was going to be the only way to ensure their safety and other peoples’ safety if they had the misfortune of meeting this guy. Or getting in his way.

“What’re we supposed to do now?” Sure, it was a simple question, but it stumped him. They were, once again, out of options. They had no leads. They had no clues. They didn’t even have a guess as to what this guy was doing.

This was their plan.

This had been their ENTIRE plan.

And now they were back to square one.

Fuck.

Terezi had shaken off the longing for his touch and scent and was now pacing around the room again, sniffing and feeling along the walls for bugs that weren’t the ones they put. Instead of focusing on them having to restart like the Sheriff, she was keeping herself occupied with thinking of possibilities. “Hmm… Well, has your friend found out anything about the bugs found?”

When she doesn’t find anything, she just kind of scowls at the wall. Maybe he hid them in rooms other than this one? In other various places throughout the building?

That could work.

“We could examine the letter… Ask the cops at the station who delivered it…” The blind girl stops with a groan, resting her head against the wall. They really WERE running out of options, weren’t they? They were starting to lose a hold on this case…

And if they completely lost it, that would mean a serial killer got free.

They would be in constant danger. Perpetually living in ‘am I going to live for tomorrow?’ mode.

That wasn’t something she wanted.

“He emailed me earlier while we were waiting. It was a dead end.” Karkat leans back against a wall and crosses his arms, watching her carefully. “I don’t think he’s just going to move on though.” His mind had been going for a while, thinking through the different possibilities, but this was the first time he’s decided to vocalize them. “Listen, Terezi. What do we know about this guy? He’s a neat freak. A psychopath with some serious OCD. We’re a couple of loose ends. Just leaving us would drive him NUTS. He wouldn’t be able to stop thinking about us. You’re right about him trying to unsettle us; it’s him trying to think he’s still in control. As long as we’re alive, we have an advantage. Because we know he’s going to come back, keep taunting us. We’re either going to solve this case or die trying. There’s no fucking in between here.”

A chill runs through Terezi, and she finds herself hugging her chest for protection. He was right. God damnit, how had Karkat thought of something before her? And made so much sense about it, too? This wasn’t good. Karkat was being logical and sane and this was not good at all.

She felt like a child for trying to avoid this. She knew well that trying to run from the truth was futile, and yet she did it anyways. “Right.” She takes a deep breath and loosens her grip on her arms, her head slowly dipping into a nod. “Well, I guess that means we can prepare for his next contact, whatever that may be. We don’t have to hunt him down; he can do that.”

Why was she ever intrigued by this case? What ever made her EXCITED about it?

Karkat’s eyes never leave her, and his head mimics her slow bob of a nod. “You may still be his first target. My status as sheriff might make him reluctant to kill me. So you’re first priority to keep safe.” Even if that was utter bullshit and this guy went after him instead of her, he was going to protect her first.

He didn’t care how in danger he was, he couldn’t let her get hurt.

Softened and comforted by his words, she goes and kisses his cheek, smiling just a little bit. He was such a sweetheart when he wanted to be. “Well, I have my knight in shining armor, so I think I’m fine.” Before he has a chance to actually respond, she snatches the bag for the bugs and goes to pluck them from their places.

“So! Since there really doesn’t seem to be anything for us to do besides wait and worry… When’s our date?” She turns to grin at him, her painted black lips stretched thin by the gesture.

Karkat just stares at her, internally cursing. The date. SHIT, he had forgotten about that. He barely registers her pushing the filled bag back into his hands, his face slowly growing red. This was actually happening, wasn’t it? They were going to go on a date.

No murders. No life or death situations.

Just the two of them, together, at a restaurant.

God, he really hopes she doesn’t expect him to not fuck up. It was pretty much IMPOSSIBLE for him to NOT fuck this up. He knew he was going to find a way to. There was no way he wasn’t going to say something wrong, no chance he wasn’t going to piss her off in the first ten minutes.

Shit, this was going to be hard. Being civil in public was hard enough, but to be civil and an actual DATE? A gentleman? A suave guy to make her swoon?

Impossible.

But he had to do this. He told her they’d go on a date. And if nothing else, it’d be a good distraction from this whole situation.

Maybe he could get himself to actually be halfway decent if it meant taking her mind off the shit they’re in right now.

“Uh, tomorrow? I guess? So we could… Get ready?” And by that, he meant time for him to call up every person he doesn’t absolutely hate – which was a very small number – and panic.

It’s easy for Terezi to pick up on the cop’s nerves, and she grins. “Are you actually nervous? After you slept at my place and after I slept at yours? Hehehe, Karkles, it’s pretty much like we’re a couple already! Stop being such a baby!” She playfully punches his shoulder, going for just showing her mild annoyance, then licks his cheek. “But tomorrow works. It’s late, anyways.”

Only focused on the heat rising on his face from her tongue, Karkat barely manages to sputter, “This is DIFFERENT. That was PROFESSIONAL.”

Those were really just excuses, but he was going to cling to it. His dignity depended on it.

“Hehehe, was it? So it was professional for you to hold me for an extra five minutes or so?”

Yeah, she knew about it. It had taken her until she woke up from her nap to realize it, and she’s been biding her time ever since. For a moment like this. “I know it doesn’t take that long to get into an apartment. And we WEREN’T in the car anymore.”

A small smirk curls up her lips, and she feels just a bit better about her reasoning skills. Though it still upset her that he had made the loose ties connection before she did.

Karkat’s face went from red to white in less than a second, and it was suddenly very difficult to force himself to talk. Shit. She knew. “How did you-“ He has to stop himself and breathe, not wanting his voice to be that high.

Of course it doesn’t work.

“I- That- You didn’t seem to be complaining at the time!” Ah, yes. Perfect cover.

The detective just cackles and walks past him, brushing herself up against his shoulder as she heads out of the hollow and empty building, her cane sliding along in front of her. “Shame on you, Mr. Sheriff! A girl as exhausted as I was wouldn’t be able to protest!” Once at his car, she takes a seat on the hood of it and grins more.

She was getting quite the high from this.

Even though she had really, really enjoyed his lingering embrace – it was so warm and comfortable and made her feel safe – it was just as fun to rile him up and embarrass the shit out of him over it.

“Now come on, get that ass of yours moving!” She barks at him, her ears easily picking up the slow rhythm of his feet as he walked. “Unless you want to wait until I’m exhausted again and carry me back to your place?”

That gets the near-petrified cop moving faster, the red coming back to his cheeks and the tips of his ears. Finding his voice again, he quickly tries to redeem himself. “I DIDN’- DID- I- I THOUGHT-“ He gives up at that, groaning and hunching his shoulders in defeat.

He doesn’t snap at her to get off his car, instead getting into his seat and ramming his head against his steering wheel.

Repeatedly.

Hating himself and his life and his inability to get back at her.

She lets out another ringing laugh and hops off the car to take her place beside him, slipping a hand between his forehead and the wheel. “Hehehe, careful, Karkles. That can cause serious brain damage.” It didn’t keep him continuing to try. “And no matter how tired I am, there’s still a part of me that knows what’s going on.” She hesitates a bit, then continues. “I was also enjoying it more than I probably should have.” Her cheeks gain some heat at the confession, and the repetitive attempts to kill brain cells stops.

He glances to the side at her, to see if she was just messing with him. She wasn’t, was she? Well, that was kind of comforting.

So he just grumbles and starts the car, lightly swatting Terezi’s hand away. “In my defense, you kept nuzzling against me and it was really fucking adorable and Ijustdidn’twannaputyoudownokay?”

Her blush darkens a little when he mentions the nuzzles, but she smiles more as he rushes his words. He really did have a soft side, didn’t he? God, if only she had actually bothered to look deeper into him before their lives were on the line.

“I wasn’t adorable, I was just tired.” She buckles and leans back into the chair, relaxing and smiling some more. “I didn’t really mind much, actually. Hehehe, I think it’s kind of cute. You not wanting to let me go, that is.”

“You were pretty fucking adorable.” He glances at her again, his blush slowly dissipating as he smirks a bit, amused. Would he be able to tease her some more? Maybe. It was tempting to try it.

“Sh-Shush! I was not adorable!” She gives an annoyed and semi-embarrassed huff, crossing her arms at him. Her cheeks continued to get hotter. “I was just snuggling into the nearest warm thing!”

Oh yeah. He has plenty of teasing leverage. “Getting flushed now, Pyrope?” His smirk grows just a bit, and it’s hard to not lean over to peck her cheek. She was just so fucking ADORABLE like this. But instead he keeps driving and continues the teasing.

It was revenge time, after all.

“Denial is the first step to acceptance.”

“J-Just shut up and drive,” she grumbles, knowing full well she couldn’t win this one. It wasn’t possible to win every fight after all. Damn. Accepting her defeat, she turns and rests her head on the seatbelt, closing her eyes and trying to make her blush go away. “I’m not flustered,” she adds, lips jutting out in a small pout.

“Don’t fall asleep again. Wouldn’t want to have to carry your ass in and tuck you into bed. Maybe let you snuggle back up against me for a bit. I’m just a huge ass heat radiator aren’t I?” Okay, he was definitely having too much fun right now. But did he give a single shit?

No. Not at all.

There wasn’t anything to lose, so why the hell not, right?

Keeping one hand on the steering wheel, he reached over to ruffle Terezi’s hair. So he MAY or may not be crossing a line at this point, but there were still no shits given. She was being adorable, and he wanted to show her some affection.

Fuck, she really messed him up.

Terezi was too surprised by his sudden gesture to respond at first, but eventually she giggles and playfully swats his hand away. “Well, since you seem so eager, I guess you’ll just have to.” Besides, being held by him didn’t seem so bad.

It sounded really, really great actually.

“Fuck it, I don’t mind.” Even though the drive to her place and then to his was already long enough… Ah, fuck it. He’ll just wait for her to fall asleep, tuck her in, then sneak out.

Not like the killer would be waiting for him to leave or anything like that.

Fuck.

Now he was really worried.

Maybe he was just going to take her back to his place. Let her stay there the night, then take her home in the morning. Yeah. That sounded like a good idea.

Not noticing his worry, Terezi grins, shifting just enough to rub against his shoulder and nuzzle his cheek. “Hehehe, really? Well then, I guess you’re just gonna have to. Don’t drop me, Vantas.” She shoots him a small scowl, sticking her tongue out like a child. “That would be very, very bad for you.” Though she’d probably just end up whining until he picked her back up.

Yeah, she could be a complete and utter child when she wanted to be.

But it was fun, and it was keeping her from thinking of the impending doom that was a psychopathic serial killer out to ‘tie up loose ends’.

That thought manages to sober her up and calm her down, and she sinks into the chair, staying perfectly still and in a semi-thinking semi-sleeping state until Karkat pulls into his parking lot.

Karkat glances over once he’s parked, his eyebrows furrowing together. Were they really going to do this? Was he REALLY going to carry her again?

Well, maybe it’d be easier to carry her up the second time…? Yeah. Let’s just go with that.

Without bothering to shake her out of whatever weird Zen state she’s in, he gets out of the car and goes around to her side, taking a small step back when he opens the door.

Holy fuck she was creepy.

She’s grinning up at him, her seatbelt off and wide awake. His door shutting had woken her up, and now she was eager and waiting to get carried up. Much like a child, she holds her arms up for him, her grin never wavering. Of course she was a little nervous about taking the teasing to this point, but if he didn’t want to carry her… Then she wasn’t going to force him to.

After all, she wasn’t exactly as light as a feather.

He wasn’t planning on turning back. Not now. He couldn’t anymore. It was impossible. He’d forever hate himself if he didn’t carry her up. He rolls his eyes and bends down to pick her up, holding her like a toddler. She wasn’t going to be treated like a full-grown woman if she was going to act like a child.

She lets out a quiet giggle and hugs his neck, obviously having no issues with the way she was being held. He grumbles back, not too pleased about that. And as light as she was – either she had lost weight in the past two days or somewhere along the way he’s gotten a little stronger – carrying her like this was actually a bit of a pain. Mainly because he wasn’t too keen on walking up to his apartment with her latched to him like a God damn koala.

It takes a couple more seconds, but then he finally manages to get her in a good position – bridal style. Fuck. Well, it was better than having her legs wrapped around his hips. Now to actually – FUCK.

He glances down at his leg, just then realizing the familiar and unpleasant tingles going through it.

His leg had fallen asleep.

Any other situation he would have been able to handle. But a Terezi happily snuggled into him and expecting him to carry her to his apartment when his leg is ASLEEP? That wasn’t going to happen. The tingles were starting to fade, and he knew the next part that was coming; the pins and needles that made him want to gnaw his leg off.

One quick glimpse down tells him that Terezi was completely oblivious to the panic that was rising in his chest. Maybe he could get somewhere before the hell began. Okay, Vantas. Suck it up, be a man, and-

He doesn’t manage to get his foot back on the ground before he falls, managing to turn so that it was Terezi falling on him and not the other way around. There wasn’t any slow motion to it; he was standing one second and on the ground the next.

God damnit that had hurt.

And what hurt more than falling onto the concrete were the nails digging into him.

Terezi had been happy where she was, her nose pressed into the crook of his neck and a smile on her lips. He smelled really good. And was really warm. And had actually decided to carry her instead of telling her to walk on her own.

She would have, of course, but it was nice to get carried around sometimes.

Except when being carried means falling. Falling isn’t nearly as fun. When she feels him lose his footing and start to go down, her eyes go wide and she instinctively curls into herself. Her nails bite into his clothes to keep her against him, figuring it’d hurt more if she lost her grip on him and hit the concrete on her own.

A slight yelp escapes at the actual impact, and she scowls up at him, still clinging like a terrified child. “Karkat! What the hell? If you didn’t want to carry me you could’ve said something!” She continues to scowl, figuring that had to be the ONLY reason for this. Then she frowns and licks his cheek, worried. “But are you alright?”

Yes, she was pissed. Of course she was pissed. Why WOULDN’T she be pissed?

But as mad as she was, she still didn’t want the dumbass hurt. After all, she HAD landed on him. If he really was against carrying her, he could have easily just dropped her and stayed standing himself. “Seriously, you idiot.”

The switching from annoyed and upset to worried was completely out of her control, but it was still confusing the fuck out of the dazed guy on the ground.

Then he growls and rubs the back of his head, glaring back down at her. “Foot fell asleep,” he grumbles, knowing all too well how much of a shitty excuse that was. Completely and totally true, but she was definitely going to use it against him. No way she wasn’t going to.

Besides, it was completely and utterly STUPID! His foot had fucking given out, leaving him to fall on his ass and just barely manage to make sure Terezi didn’t get some kind of concussion on the ground. All because of a few TINGLES. That wasn’t a thing cops were supposed to do, let alone the SHERIFF.

God, he was a failure.

“What about you? Break anything?” Besides what felt like a few of his ribs. She wasn’t exactly heavy to carry, but when she falls, she falls HARD. Fuck, he hurts.

Then again, that was a really stupid question. Even worse than the excuse. If something WAS broken, then they sure as hell wouldn’t be having a conversation. “Nevermind, ignore that question.”

Fuck, at this rate a serial killer wasn’t needed to kill them. He’d end up doing it himself.

Aaaand now his leg was doing the pins and needle thing. Fuck everything. All he wanted to do was carry her up and tuck her in, make himself comfortable, and go the fuck to sleep. How difficult was that?

Apparently, it was impossible.

Doing as the Sheriff said, Terezi pretends as though he had never asked that question. The most that hurt was probably her tongue from when she bit it on impact. But there wasn’t any blood, so it wasn’t anything to cry over.

Instead she focuses on the main issue: the reason he dropped her. “Hehehe, seriously? THAT’S why you dropped a blind girl?” She manages to hold back her snickers for a few seconds, then bursts into laughter. “If your foot was asleep you should’ve just waited! Or said something!” She continues to laugh, resting her chin on his chest and grinning up at him. How could she be annoyed at him for being an adorable dumbass? “You really are an idiot, aren’t you?”

His face goes red as his glare turns into a childish scowl, and he averts his eyes. The fact that she couldn’t see didn’t change the fact that it was still creepy as fuck to have her staring up at him like that. If anything, it made it worse. “I didn’t think I’d FALL.” Well, if there was one good thing about her being a creepy son of a fuck, it’s that she wasn’t mad anymore.

Which was really, really good. He hated it when she was mad at him.

“Wow, you really ARE an idiot.” She continues to snicker, shifting to prod at his legs. “How old are you? And you haven’t figured out you can’t walk with a numb leg?”

A small wince escapes as the prodding makes the invisible needles dig into him more. Well, at least it was fading. Somewhat? It didn’t hurt AS much anymore. “No shut up, I could walk perfectly fucking fine.” Yeah, real smart. Use the same tactic that got you into this fucking mess. You’re a genius, Vantas.

“So…” Terezi thinks for a little, then adopts a hurt look. “Are you saying my weight is what set it off?” Her look turns into mild anger, and she glares up at him, hoping she was getting the look right. A little bit of teasing couldn’t hurt, right? “Did you just call me FAT?” So long as she doesn’t laugh, she should be able to pull this off.

Oh God, this’ll be great.

Karkat’s face goes deathly pale, and he stares down at the pissed off detective. Oh shit. Shit shit shit. “NO NO NO NO NO, FUCK NO.” He shook his head repeatedly, able to feel his brain bouncing around as he did. Shit, was he sweating? God damn this was scary. “THAT’S NOT- I DIDN’T-“ He decides to just shut up, going rigid under her.

He couldn’t show any kind of fear.

She could probably smell that like a feral wolf could.

Unable to hold back anymore, Terezi bursts into laughter. “Hehehe, oh my God, Karkles! You’re absolutely terrified!” She runs her fingers through his hair, then ruffles it before hopping off of him and standing, holding a hand out to him. “Come on, Sheriff. Get your ass up.”

He immediately goes to fix his hair, probably making himself a hypocrite for messing up her hair, and glares. Did she really just fuck with him like that? Then act as though it HADN’T just happened? Blind girls were fucking insane. With a grumble, he takes her hand and pulls himself up. He didn’t really want to admit it, but her hand was actually nice and warm.

He liked it.

He liked holding her hand in general, really.

It reminded him of how real this was, how real SHE was.

He hadn’t been expecting to enjoy a case like this so much, and yet, he was. He had been determined to hate every second of this from the beginning to the end, and yet… He couldn’t. He didn’t know what changed, but it was impossible to hate anything that was happening.

Minus the killer on the loose.

That part was pretty easy to hate.

Terezi grins up at him, pecking his lips before turning and pulling him inside. Then she stops and tilts her head. This didn’t smell like her apartment building. Had he brought her back to his? “Karkat? Why’re we at your place?” Weren’t they supposed to be getting ready for their date tomorrow? That was a little impossible to do if they were BOTH at his apartment.

“I feel better knowing you’re sleeping here than somewhere I can’t reach. Y’know, killer and all? Yeah. I’d rather you not get your throat slit in the night.” His voice was a little monotonous, but that was more because of surprise than anything else. God her lips were soft and warm.

“Right…” She gnaws on her lip, instinctually squeezing his hand for comfort.

Wait.

Why was she still holding his hand?

Well, he didn’t seem too bothered by it… So why not, right? It was comforting knowing there was someone there with her, without having to be able to smell them. Even after all these years, she still doesn’t fully trust her sense of smell.

“You’re going to have to lead me to which one is yours. I was a little passed out when you brought me here.” She offers him a sheepish grin, free hand going through her hair in mild embarrassment.

He would’ve gestured to his door, except there were a few problems with that. One, she was blind so he’d pretty much just be flapping his arm around stupidly. Two, his gesturing hand was currently in a blind girl vice. Three, his apartment was kind of on the third, not ground, floor.

Not that he had any kind of issue with number two. In fact, it was his favorite ‘problem’. Her hand was cooler than hers and was a nice change from his constant fever-worthy heat. That and it’s pretty soft, too.

“Third floor, third door on the left.” As she nods and heads off, a grin on her adorable face, a thought occurs to him. “Wait, you need your shit from your apartment, don’t you?” Great. The very same apartment that the killer (whom Karkat has decided will be dubbed ‘McFaggot Face’ from now on) probably had under watch.

The girl blinks, then groans and slumps, her hold on his hand slackening a bit. Way to be a genius, Pyrope. Letting a guy mess with your head to the point where you forget you need your stuff. “I have a bank account, I can just withdraw money from there and use it to buy whatever I need. I don’t think it’d be a very good idea to try and go back now.” Even though she’s spent a bit at his place without her basic necessities, she’d been passed out the entire time.

Or at least a good majority of it.

She leads him to his door, still grasping his hand. She didn’t want to let go. Not yet, at least. It was pathetic, but she didn’t really care. She liked the feeling of another person’s hand in hers; especially since said hand belonged to the short-tempered Sheriff.

“Not unless you’re planning on using me as bait to lure him out,” she continues. After saying that, a light bulb goes off and a sly grin creeps onto her face. Looking up at him, she gives her eyebrows a small waggle, a plan forming in her mind. “Hehehe, hey Karkles.” It wasn’t a bad idea, really. It’d get them who they needed.

Immediately catching on to what that grin meant, Karkat’s eyes grew wide. “I swear to God, Terezi. If you suggest what I think you’re going to…” He shakes his head, not even wanting to hear it. There were going to be problems if she thought he was going to go through with something like that. No chance in hell.

He wasn’t going to risk her life like that. No way. Never.

“What? It would get things done with quicker! And it would be on our OWN turf! We wouldn’t have to wait for him to contact us! And we’d kind of be choosing the location, too. Come on, Karkles, it wouldn’t be too bad of an idea.” She understands full well exactly why he doesn’t want her to do something like this. SHE doesn’t want to do this.

But while the thought of being killed for merely trying to go home terrifies her, she knows something has to be done to bring the killer to justice. And she can’t show her fear about the idea, either. She can’t have him worrying about her.


	9. Chapter 9

Karkat stares at her, not at all liking the idea. He hasn’t to find some way to convince her not to. Think, Vantas! You’re the Goddamn Sheriff! “What about our date?” It’s a desperate grasp for something, anything, that’ll convince her to not do this. She can’t do this. She just CAN’T! “We should at least wait a day, I mean Jesus fuck he’s probably asleep right now!” That or he’s out doing something that’ll only set them further back. Not like there’s not much more ‘back’ they can get.

The blind girl can’t help but giggle at her ‘partner’ as his voice practically cracks. “Okay, okay. We’ll do our date THEN do the bait plan. Is that better for you, you big baby?”

“Forget the date. We’ll go after. You know, if you’re still fucking ALIVE.” As soon as he shouts that, he cringes. Fuck. He shouldn’t be taking his anger out on her. He doesn’t even know why this is pissing him off so much!

Completely unaffected by his shout, Terezi pulls him closer by his hand, leaning up and pressing her lips against his. There’s got to be some way to make him happy, right? While she wants to go on their date, this case takes priority. There are lives on the line, and she has always told herself she will risk hers if it saves innocents.

The moment her lips are on his, he relaxes and silently hates himself as he holds her. He gives into her too easily. It’s impossible for him to say no to her. So he kisses her back, not caring that he’s being a little more forceful than he needs to be. If she ends up dying doing this plan, this is the last time he’ll get to kiss her. He has to at least make it count.

After several delicious seconds, Terezi pulls away with a soft giggle. “Hehehe, you’re rather eager, aren’t you?” Her voice is a soft murmur, her fingers now trailing through his hair. “Why is that? Are you worried about this guy? Are you worried about what may happen to us? To me?” She doesn’t know who she is anymore. This isn’t a thing Terezi Pyrope would do. But then again, she doesn’t know how Terezi Pyrope would do in a romantic relationship, in a romantic situation. Her thing with the coolkid hadn’t exactly qualified as a ‘relationship’. It was more like casual hanging out with the title of ‘couple’. 

While Terezi was busy figuring out herself, Karkat was having his own issues. Her fingers in his hair were making him shiver, a little tingle down his spine that he couldn’t really figure out. He’s a full-grown fucking MAN, he shouldn’t be shivering like some hormonal teenager at his hair being fondled!

“I just- I don’t want anything to happen to you,” he mumbles, leaning in for another kiss. He lingers for far longer than he should, deciding to fuck dignity. He’s a romantic, he’s going to romance, even if that means he looks like some virgin highschooler that’s never had a pretty girl touch him.

His kiss brings her back to reality, and she quickly returns it, giggling softly against his lips. “Karkl-“ She stops herself before she can finish the nickname, deciding he at least deserves to be called his real name. This is a serious matter, after all. “Karkat, I’m not leaving you. And I never intend to.” Before he has enough time to respond, she kisses him again, closing her eyes and just feeling him. His chapped lips, his soft hair, the heat that radiates off him…

Before she can get lost in him, she pulls away and takes a step back. “Now come on, let’s not give your neighbors a show.”

Karkat blinks himself back to awareness, then hastily goes to unlock his door as he remembers they’re standing in the hall of his apartment. Leave it to her to make him forget something that important. He holds the door open for her, hoping his cheeks aren’t red. She had called him by his name. She had said she isn’t going to leave him. There’s nothing she can do if the killer decides to do his thing, but her saying that is enough to make him feel all stupid and tingly. Yeah, he’s fallen for this girl and he’s fallen hard.

“Such a gentleman.” She giggles and walks past him, giving his cheek a quick swipe of her tongue as she does. Once she’s fully inside his apartment, she takes in a deep breath and lets out a sigh. “Ehehe, to be honest, I wouldn’t mind having to stay here for a long time. It smells so good… Plus, it’s YOUR place.” She turns to grin at him, pulling him inside and going to kiss at him again.

But instead of kissing on him more to continue what they were doing in the hall, she lets go of him and bounds into his kitchen. Without asking any sort of permission or anything, she finds something random and starts to munch. If she was given the chance, she would never stop eating.

It was like she was TRYING to mess with his head. She just left him there. After kissing him like that. That’s not a thing people just DO! Well, apparently it IS. She kind of just did it. He glowers after her, his head getting even more jumbled up than before. This isn’t right. He’s never felt so fucked up before.

Part of him wanted her, craved to taste her. It longed for her like every protagonist in his romance novels longs for their soul mate.

Another part of her wanted to get the hell out of this thing before shit got serious. He may be a romantic, but he’s still pretty damn scared.

And then there was a tiny part of his brain he didn’t like to think about that was still scared shitless of her.

Terezi’s moved onto his counter at this point, happily munching away on his food. She gets up only to grab another thing to eat, not even caring about what it is. Hell, she doesn’t care right now. She’s eating fast, something she’s only ever done when nervous and worried. It always ends with a sore stomach and a practically empty kitchen.

But what is she nervous about? The case? Karkat? No. It’s definitely the case. It’s totally not about the cute Sheriff she loves to tease so much. The Sheriff whose apartment she’s going to be staying in until this killer is caught. Because it’s totally the killer she’s all nervous about.

Yeah, she’ll just keep telling herself that.

When Karkat glances over to Terezi, deciding to deal with his fucked up emotions later, he raises an eyebrow. “You do realize that pizza’s been in there for about a month, right?” His apartment may be spotless - the guy really has nothing else to do when the work day ends - but he always forgets about the shit he has in his fridge. She’ll be lucky to not get sick, he doesn’t even know how long that pizza’s been in there. For all he knows, it could be housing a whole damn ecosystem.

Terezi pauses when she hears that, dead eyes glancing down to the slice she has in her hands. Then she slowly sniffs at it, shrugs, and goes back to eating it. “If I get sick, then you can just take care of me. Even if it’s after we catch this bastard, because it’s your pizza that got me sick.” The slice she was on is gone a second later, replaced by the blind detective’s grin.

“What the hell kind of logic is that?! It’s you that fucking ate it!” He crosses his arms and glares at her, hating both her and himself for getting into this kind of stupid argument. Maybe he just needs an argument. Any sort of argument. Arguing has always made him feel better. It probably had something to do with pent up rage finally being released, or some bullshit like that.

He actually kind of misses the police department right now. There were plenty of incompetent asshole to lash out at there. And they actually deserved it, too. It’s a good thing Terezi’s got a load of patience.

But if anyone was to ask her, she wouldn’t say it was ‘patience’. ‘Patience’ doesn’t cackle in delight at the sound of him shouting. And that is exactly what Terezi does, leaning back on the counter and continuing to grin. No, she doesn’t see this as patience, she sees this as getting a good kick out of someone who’s got a fuse so short it’s practically nonexistent. “You’re the one that let me eat it! You didn’t warn me that you’ve got rotten pizza in your fridge?” She switches to pout mode, batting her lashes at him. “What, do you not want to take care of me? That’s really mean, Karkles… Especially since you slept in my bed last night…”

“Well I’m repaying the favor tonight, aren’t I?” He doesn’t take the bait she so obliviously laid out, moving away from the kitchen to instead make himself a nest on the couch. She’ll take the bed. And it’s not like he’s going to be getting any sleep tonight, anyways. He’s apparently got a fridge to clean out before his dipshit of a partner decides to eat any other moldy pizzas he’s stocked himself with.

Terezi hops off the counter and goes over to him and the couch, picking up one of the pillows and smacking him with it. “No. Couches are evil.” Her stoic face would make a Strider proud. She isn’t joking, though, like they often do. She’s being one-hundred percent serious. Couches are fucking evil.

“OW FUCK.” Okay, so it hadn’t really hurt. He was just shocked. He had NOT seen that coming. “Terezi, what the FUCK? I usually sleep out here anyways! My couch is fucking great. You couldn’t get a couch better than this. As a matter of fact, you’re not even getting this couch.” He flopped himself onto his couch, then hissed at her.

Yes, Karkat Vantas actually hissed like some kind of fucked up and pissed off cat. This was war.

Completely unfazed by the hissing, Terezi cackles. “I bet I could convince you to.” She winks, then plops herself into his lap, facing him and grinning wide. “I’m rather good at convincing people.” She leans in and gives his cheek a lick, deciding she is totally going to do this. It’ll be fun.

When she makes herself comfortable on his lap, his face lights up cherry red. What the hell is she doing?! “T-Terezi, get the FUCK off of me!” Shit. He stuttered. Stuttering is bad. Stuttering implies that she’s already won. And there’s no chance in hell she’s going to be winning this.

She just giggles more and leans back, the arms around his neck keeping her from falling off his lap. “Why should I? You’re awfully comfortably for a hissy little baby.” She licks his cheek again, much slower this time. He’s totally going to get her back for this, but does she care? Not at all.

The feel of her tongue makes him twitch, and he bites his lip. Was this torture? Because he’s fairly fucking certain it is. “I hope you’re enjoying yourself here. Unfortunately, you’re working against the God damn Sheriff. It isn’t going to be that easy.” At least he managed to keep his voice even this time. That’s good.

“Hehehe, I’d be disappointed if it was! But yes, I am very much enjoying myself.” She flashes him a wide grin, then dips her head down to move her licks to a more necky region. She is most certainly going to get hell for doing all of this, but it’s getting more and more enjoyable by the second. And with it being Karkat, she’s certain she’ll enjoy the consequences.

His breath hitches as she goes for his neck, his heart going faster and face definitely heating up. “G-God dammit, Pyrope.” He tries to growl at her, but it turns into him biting back a slight moan. “I am n-NOT a lollipop.” Fuck, his voice shouldn’t be shaking this much. Shaking is even worse than stuttering!

Terezi gives a soft giggle and continues to lick, her body beginning to soften from just giving his neck a little love. “But you certainly taste like one, Mr. Sheriff… And it certainly sounds like you’re enjoying this…” She gives his neck a slight nip, careful to not actually hurt him, and smirks up at him.

The moment the tiny moan slips out of his lips, he realizes it was the biggest mistake of his entire rotten life. Fuck. It’s time to either get out of this mess or die trying. At least, that’s what the more rational part of his brain said. The rest of his mind - and his body - refused to listen to that and would rather stay for the torture. Fuuuck. Well, it’s not like he’s TOTALLY hating this… He never took himself for a masochist before, but this is pretty damn close, right?

Her smirk is replaced by a wide grin as she hears the moan, shifting her legs so she’s resting on him more comfortably. “Now what was that I just heard? Was that the Sheriff saying he’s enjoying this?” She snickers a little and kisses his neck now, adding in the gentle nibbles occasionally. “I think he’s slipping,” she purrs, making sure to not leave any marks on his neck. After all, they’re still on a case. They can’t be anything more than partners. At least, that’s the front they have to put up.

Karkat curses in his head, considering he can’t catch enough breath to actually vocalize his profanities. How the hell is she so GOOD at this?! It isn’t fucking fair! And to make his situation even worse, another moan just slipped out of his mouth. There’s no fucking way he’s winning this. God. Fucking. Dammit.

When she hears that next moan, she pulls away from his neck and licks his cheek again, acting casual despite the fact that she had just loved on his neck for a good few minutes. “So, you gonna sleep with me tonight or what?” She lets out a cackle, grinning at him.

The sudden lick on his cheek and the lack of anything after has Karkat staring. He may have been complaining the whole damn time, but he had actually been ENJOYING himself. Not like he’d never say that, but still. “F-Fuck no, you don’t win.” His voice was still wobbly, but he was certain it’d even out in a few moments. After all, he wasn’t getting loved on anymore.

Realizing that this means it was his turn to retaliate, Karkat sits up and pulls her into a kiss, hoping it’ll distract her. After a good few seconds of kissing, during which Terezi seems to have calmed her ass down, he pulls away. “We could always share the couch.” He smirks a little bit at the suggestion, wanting to see her get pissy and give up on this stupid idea of them sleeping together. They’re supposed to be partners on a murder case, not snuggle buddies during the night!

“Oh?” She knows full well what he’s trying to do. He wants her to give up and leave in a huff. He wants her to sleep in the bed while he takes the couch. Well, he isn’t going to be using her hatred of couches against her. Not tonight, at least. Maybe on a night she wasn’t so invested in winning. “That sounds like a GREAT idea to me!”

Then she goes back to his neck, kissing and nibbling and in general just loving on it. But she pulls away after just a few seconds, smiling up at him with a sharpness to it that only means trouble for him. “I hope you know we’ll have to be VERY close to fit.” She sends a wink in his direction, her smile sharpening into a proper smirk.

God dammit, that had really backfired. How the hell is she always one step ahead of him?! The girl can’t be human! “Fuck it, then. The bed’s comfier anyways.” He gives up. There’s nothing he can do to win. This stupid thing is just going to keep going on and on and on until SOMEONE gives in, and he knows full well she’ll be willing to do this shit all night.

Terezi’s smirk widens into her grin, and she hugs onto him tighter. “So I win?” Despite looking triumphant of her victory and sure of her decision, she’s starting to feel apprehensive about sharing a bed with him. They’re both fully coherent this time, and it’s either going to be extremely awkward or very perfect. But regardless of worrying, she can’t back down. Karkat wouldn’t let her even if she tried, anyways.

“After putting me through all of that? Fuck it. Why the hell not?” Despite trying to not think about it, he was thinking back to the last time she was here. How adorable she had been while she was sleeping and in her cocoon of sheets. It felt like ages ago.

But while thinking about that, another thought comes rampaging into his head. Their plan. Fuck. Tomorrow was when Terezi put herself out as bait for the killer. Would he even be able to be there to watch her? To make sure she didn’t die?

He’s brought out of his worrying by her giggles, frowning a little bit when she hops off. Completely unaware of his inner turmoil, she was hyped up on the thought of getting to sleep with him. “So! Do I just sleep in this, or do I get some ACTUAL pajamas to wear?” Of course they’re going to be his clothes. All of hers are in her apartment. And she isn’t exactly ready to risk her life just yet. Besides, it’s not like she doesn’t enjoy the thought of wearing his things. In fact, it makes her feel a little happier. She’s going to ignore the fact that she feels kind of creepy thinking that.

Without a second thought, Karkat pulls off his sweater and tosses it at her. “This work?” Wait. WHAT. Why the HELL did he just do that?! Fucking Christ, this woman is driving him mad. He needs a shrink or something. And a new sweater. That one had been his favorite.

Terezi goes red when she feels the sweater land on her, instinctively giving it a sniff. Yep. This is definitely Karkat’s. She sniffs over in Karkat’s direction, her blush growing. Yep. There is definitely a shirtless Karkat on the couch now. Why he did that, she has no idea. But she won’t complain, and he won’t be getting this back anytime soon. Or at all, depending on whether she decides to keep it or not.

“I’ll be right back!” She grins and darts into the bathroom, over her embarrassment quickly. She changes into his sweater and practically struts out of his bathroom, grinning more than before. It’s warm and cozy and smells really, really good. He won’t be getting this back.

Oh God. What has he DONE? With the way she’s strutting and smirking, he’s never going to be getting that sweater back. He’d be thoroughly pissed off if it wasn’t for how fucking adorable she looks. “Happy now?” She better be. That sweater means everything to him. Okay, not literally, since it’s just a stupid sweater, but still. That was his favorite one, and she better appreciate it.

With a giggle, she bounds over to him and kisses his cheek. “Very! I smell really good now!” She presses a sleeve to her face and inhales his scent, letting out a happy hum. “But what about you? You’re kind of shirtless now.” As though she has to prove it, she gives his chest a prod, having to resist the urge to sniff it again. 

Karkat just gives a shrug to her question, quickly getting over it. She’s so happy with it, he can’t possible be upset. “Fuck it. I have other sweaters.” He crosses his arms before remembering she’s blind and can’t actually see how scrawny his chest is. Dave probably had muscles. No. Fuck Dave. He won’t think about that ass. He has the girl now. He’s won.


	10. Chapter 10

Terezi giggles, able to tell how embarrassed he is. He’s a grown man and getting all embarrassed because he’s shirtless in front of a blind girl. A girl whom he’s kissed multiple times and is going to be taking on a date. God is he adorable. “Hehehe, what’re you acting so shy about? You’re not the first guy I’ve smelled shirtless, you know.” She grins wide and leans in to lick his cheek, resting a cool hand on his warm arm. He’s always so warm. It’s so, so nice.

“First one I liked, though. Dave never really smelled quite right.” He’s definitely comparing himself to Dave in his head, and she has to make sure he isn’t getting all mopey about it somehow.

Take that, Strider. “Damn right I smell better than that douche bag.” Honestly, Karkat doesn’t even know why he hates Dave so much, he just does.

Well, okay, he’s lying to himself. He has an idea of why he may. Terezi always seemed to prefer that douche over him. But, apparently, she doesn’t? After all, she’s here with him, wearing his sweater and giving him affection. He’s still pretty damn confused about what’s happened over the last couple of days. So to put off thinking about that even more, he asks a question he knows he’s going to regret.

“Are we going to talk about the plan tomorrow or keep putting it off?”

She frowns as he brings up tomorrow’s plan, not wanting to think about it tonight. Or ever, really. Her arms go around herself as though that would protect her, and she bites into her lip before responding. “I’d rather put it off… Tonight was exciting enough in it’s own way.” Between focusing on the fact that she isn’t dead and coming up with yet another plan that was even more likely to get her killed than the last one, she would much prefer the former.

For a brief second, she wonders if she has a subconscious want for suicide. Or if she was somehow a masochist and never thought about it before. But then she shakes that away, not wanting to think about that. It was just as bad as talking about the plan. They both led to death.

“It’s late, and I’m going to say that Detective Pyrope is just Terezi Pyrope. The blind PI is off duty for the night.” She sounds more tired when she talks than she had intended to, but she doesn’t try to make up for it or anything. Her exhaustion is more emotional than physical, though. Waiting for a killer to show was stressful enough, but when he doesn’t show at all? It left a lingering feeling of anxiety deep in her.

Even though he was still worried, Karkat nods anyways. This must be way partnering with someone you have romantic feelings for is a bad idea. But it isn’t like he PLANNED on having a crush on her! Or whatever this is. He doesn’t know what to call it, but it sure as hell isn’t his fault for liking her. “So what does ‘off duty’ Terezi Pyrope do for fun?” It was time to lighten the mood. Or get to know her. Whatever it is, he just wanted to get the topic off of the killer and their plans on what to do about him. Clearly it’s messing with her, and he doesn’t want that to continue.

The question perks her up, and she sends a wide grin in his direction. “Hmm… That’s a really good question! It’s been a while since I actually decided to go off duty. I usually just stay up late typing up loose ends on cases and working on current ones or trying to advertise a little more. Occasionally I contact old customers to check on them, and sometimes they have another case.” She gives a casual shrug, as if it’s no big deal to literally live for her work. To her, it wasn’t anything major. She loves what she does.

This is the first time in years she’s wanted a break from it.

“Well fuck.” To give himself more time to actually come up with a good response to that, he heads towards his closet to get another shirt on. He was actually getting pretty tired of the whole shirtless thing, too. “Don’t you do anything for FUN? You know, friends?” He looks back at her, raising an eyebrow. “Don’t you have, I don’t know, a fucking life? All that useless bullcrap that people tend to get themselves into?” Okay, so maybe that wasn’t the GREATEST way to end his questioning, but nobody has ever said that Karkat Vantas was smooth with words.

Terezi follows after him, shrugging her shoulders at his question. “What I do IS my fun! Investigating cases IS my life! Besides, if it’s ‘useless bullcrap’, why are you getting so worked up about me not having one?” She lets out a little cackle and presses her lips to his cheek. “You’re so contradictory sometimes! I doubt YOU do anything for fun! And I know for a fact you don’t have any friends, nor do you have a life.”

Completely unfazed by the cheek kiss, Karkat glares at her, annoyed. “Who the fuck told you that?! I have PLENTY of friends! First of all there’s the lispy guy I told you about earlier. Sollux. He makes me play all these geeky-ass online games just so he can kick my ass in them and laugh at me. Fuck, if that’s not friendship, I don’t know what the hell is. I’d mention Kanaya, but she acts more like my mom.” He rolls his eyes, thinking about all of their interactions. She’s practically been his ‘mother’ since they first met. “And she makes me watch all of these really awful romance movies with her.”

He says that as though he loathes having to do that, but he knows he enjoys it. He just doesn’t want Terezi to know that. Especially since they were honestly shitty movies, but they were so shitty they were amazing. Or maybe that’s just because he’s a hopeless sap anything with even an inkling of romance is amazing to him.

To get him to stop thinking about what a hopeless piece of shit he is, he continues on with his list of ‘friends’. “There’s Gamzee. He’s not so bad after you learn to deal with all of his juggalo shit.” The list is really more like a list of people he doesn’t completely despise, but he’s going to call it a friend list just to get Terezi off his back.

“Hehehe, that doesn’t sound like friendship, Vantas! That sounds more like people you just tolerate! There’s a difference!” Clearly, she had seen through the very, very sheer veil. Though she’ll admit, she’s impressed with the grand total of three. How do those poor people deal with him? She’s fallen for him, and yet she still thinks he can be a pain in the ass!

Okay, that comment got him a little bit more than annoyed. “Fuck it, I’m not even going to argue about this with you.” Does he really seem like THAT much of a douche? Probably. In fact, he’s sure of it.

Or maybe she’s just playing around with him and he’s taking it all too seriously like the gullible piece of fuck he is. He’s fairly certain they’re friends. After all, it’s rare for Karkat to not hate somebody. The fact that their existence wasn’t a complete and utter pain in his ass had to count for SOMETHING.

Able to sense that she went too far with her teasing, Terezi frowns, then wraps her arms around him. “Sorry… Did I take that a little too far…? It’s been a while since I had any kind of proper relationship with someone… My skills are probably really rusty.” She gives his cheek a small kiss, hoping she really hadn’t pushed him too far this time. Teasing someone is fun, sure, but she doesn’t want to push him over the edge.

“Well congratulations, you’ve officially got the worst teacher in the entire fucking history of forever.” Despite his harsh words, he leans in and kisses her. His eyes glance to the clock, and he internally curses. When did it get so late? He doesn’t want tonight to end. And not because it’s ‘magical’ or any of that sappy bullshit he loves. Tomorrow, they’re going to have to deal with their ‘plan’.

The kiss makes her perk up and giggle, and she keeps the kiss going for as long as she can. But then she pulls away, her lips still brushing against his. “Well then, I guess we’re learning together. Now come on, it’s time to get s-so-“ She pulls away from him more, interrupted by a yawn, then smiles at him. “Time to get some sleep.” She slips away from him and heads towards his bed, knowing he’s going to follow. She curls up and grins over at him, waiting.

Sleeping means the morning. Sleep really isn’t one of Karkat’s preferred options right now. But still, Karkat crawls into the bed with her, half tempted to create a pillow barrier. Not because he wants to keep her away from him - God no, he would love to snuggle the shit out of her while they sleep - but rather because he knows he sprawls out while he sleeps.

Before anything pillow-barrier-like can happen, Terezi’s latched herself onto him, clinging and nuzzling into him. “Hehehe, hey there.” She smiles up at him, making it very clear that she’s going to be clinging to him for the entirety of the night. She hasn’t had the chance to snuggle with anyone at night for a long time, and the fact that she may die tomorrow makes her want it even more.

“Jesus- yeah, hi. Haven’t seen you in a long time. How the fuck’ve you been? Good. Great. I’m just fan-fucking-tasting here.” There is no getting rid of her, is there? No being on his own. But he doesn’t really mind all that much. He stretches out a little, careful to not shift her too much lest she start whining, then drapes an arm over her. Totally not because he wants to hold her, though. No, not at all.

Terezi giggles at his words, kissing his cheek after his warm arm goes around her. “I’ve been better.” She grins at him, then seems to realize her glasses are still on. Oops. She easily wiggles her way out of his embrace and sets her shades on his nightstand, then goes right back to clinging to him. She takes in a deep breath, enjoying how his scent is the most prevalent, then lets out a little laugh. “Everything always smells different with my glasses!”

How the FUCK does she keep slipping away from him like this?! Maybe he just has to hold her tighter? Yeah. That’s what he’ll do. He tightens his arm around her, deciding that that was the perfect fix. “What do I smell like without them?” He’s too tired to keep his curiosity to himself, his eyes starting to droop shut already. Despite not wanting to sleep, laying on a comfy bed and holding a soft and nice smelling girl kind of made him sleepy.

Starting to feel tired as well, she snuggles into his chest and breathes in again. “You smell like the best thing ever…” She breathes the words, then nestles into his neck to get a better place for smelling him. Plus, it was a lot warmer and just felt more natural. “Cherry and anger… Dedication and care…” She yawns, then mumbles the last word more to herself than as an answer to his question. “Love…”

The smile that had been threatening to break past the grumpy mask Karkat always puts on finally cracks through. “Sounds fucking great,” he murmurs, the hand that wasn’t laying on the small of her back going to gently pet her hair. Sure, it was a little awkward feeling, but he isn’t going to be letting her go anytime soon.

She giggles softly and nuzzles his hand, her own smile soft and edgeless. “You’re really lovable when you’re not being a grump…” She closes her eyes, just taking in how warm he is and how nice he smells. “You should be like this more often…” Another yawn slips out, and she nuzzles into his chest again, kissing at his shirt.

“Fuck no.” The answer is immediate, and he lets go of her for just long enough to pull the covers over them. Then he’s back to hugging her tightly, not wanting her to slip away from him again. “I’d have to deal with you calling me adorable all the time, and that sure as hell isn’t happening.”

Terezi thinks for just a second, then giggles and snuggles in closer to him. “Hehehe, then what about adorabloodthirsty?” It was a totally ridiculous word she just came up with while stoned from exhaustion, but she likes it. She really likes it. “Would that work for you?” She nudges against his jaw playfully, giggling some more. She’s gotten ridiculously giggly, though. It’s about time she’s gotten to sleep, but she really doesn’t want to sleep. The night will be over and she’ll have to risk her life. And even if she doesn’t die, their partnership will end.

She doesn’t want their partnership to end.

“Hell fucking yes.” That’s a nickname Karkat will be able to stand. Or at least it’s one that tired Karkat will be able to stand, and as it is right now that’s all that matters. “What happened to sleep? Are we not doing that now?”

His reaction to the nickname had brought her mostly out of thinking about the future, and she nuzzles him some more. “Mmh… Nah… I don’t want this to stop.” She’s pretty much lost all thinking processes at this point, saying whatever’s on her mind at the moment. “It’s nice here…”

How his mind managed to go from thinking about them sleeping back to her eyes, he’ll never know. But he still wants to know what happened to her. “You never finished telling me what happened to your eyes.” He doesn’t even know why he wants to know so badly, he just does. He may as well ask now. If she dies tomorrow… Well, it’s a good excuse to keep them awake for a little bit longer.

Without even really thinking about the sudden topic change, Terezi immediately responds to his request. “Vriska was upset… I tried helping her through whatever it was… Probably had to do with her mom again… They’ve always had issues…” She was practically reliving the memory at this point, curling up tighter and pressing into Karkat more. “My eyes have always been really sensitive… To anything, really… She found a way to literally burn them… I don’t know how she did it, I don’t even know what she used… But it was a really powerful light… And it’s the last thing I remember ever being able to see…” She frowns, knowing full well how ridiculous it sounds. Little kids are always warned about not staring into the sun for too long or they’ll go blind, but Terezi managed to get blinded but something like an overpowered laser pointer.

Karkat’s quiet for a few seconds, then softly asks, “Did it hurt?” What else is he supposed to say here? Is this when he’s supposed to comfort her? How the hell does he even do that, anyways?

“Of course it did…! She pretty much burned my eyes…!” She gives his neck a slight nip, mildly miffed that he even felt like he needed to ask that question. Of course it would hurt! But it still feels good to share it. If other people ask, she usually says she was born blind or was born with an eye condition that eventually led to her being blind.

Another few seconds of silence, then another GREAT response from the ‘smooth-talking Sheriff’. “Well that sounds like it kind of sucked.” Feeling her nip his neck made him open an eye, and he was still watching her. If she’s planning on starting the shit from earlier again, there’s no way in hell he’s losing again. At least, not as easily as he lost before.

Terezi doesn’t nip him again, instead yawning and nodding her head. “Mhmm… It took a while… But eventually I got my sight back… Just not in the conventional way…” Technically, her sight never came back, but she learned to deal with it. Though, again, it wasn’t in the normal my-ears-are-now-bat-sensitive kind of way.

After a bit of searching, Karkat manages to find her hand under the covers, and he immediately takes it. He gives it a gentle squeeze, hoping that could count as giving comfort. “You sound like you’re gonna fucking pass out at any minute. Just go to sleep already.” He’s very skilled at using harsh words but sounding soft and caring. He blames romcoms.

The gentle squeeze to her hand makes her squeeze back, and she gives a little giggle as well. “But I don’t wa-“ She pauses to yawn, shivering just a little bit after. “I don’t want to…” She continues to shiver even after she’s done talking. It was her body’s way of telling her to get the hell to sleep because it’s too tired to keep up a proper body temperature.

“Why the fuck are you SHIVERING? It’s like eighty degrees under here!” Despite yelling at her, he pulls her closer to him, as though that will fix the problem. For a second, he has a hopeful thought. Maybe she’s getting sick. If she’s sick, she won’t be able to do the plan tomorrow. No suicide mission. But of course, she hasn’t seemed sick at all over the past few days.

“B’cause I feel cold… But you’re warm…” She yawns again and presses into him some more, her mumbled words sounding more slurred than before. “It’s not a problem… Happens a lot… I’ve fallen asleep at my desk a lot, too…”

“Terezi.” Karkat only gives her that as a warning before he tilts his head down to kiss her. He has to get her to stop rambling somehow, right? “Shut up and sleep already.” There’s no more fighting it. They finally have to go to sleep and deal with reality in the morning.

“Mmmmhm… M’lright…” Without fighting him or arguing, she’s asleep in a few seconds, her hand still holding his.

Despite the fact that it could be considered creepy, he watches her for a few seconds, just listening to her breathing and trying to figure her out. But it’s no use. There is no figuring out the great blind detective Terezi Pyrope. So he gives up and falls asleep, arm still tight around her and hand still grasping her tightly.

Though he will never admit to it, his dreams were all nightmares of the ways tomorrow could go wrong. Most all of them ended in her dying.


	11. Chapter 11

Terezi had been happily asleep, nestled against Karkat, until something woke her up at around three in the morning. It didn’t take her too long to figure out what was keeping her from enjoying her nice warm slumber with a nice warm asshole: hunger. While she would love to go back to sleep and forget about her hunger, she knows it would result in her stomach rebelling by means of dying whale noises.

So she slips out of bed and goes to the kitchen to find herself things to snack on. Hopefully he won’t mind. She hums to herself as she finds a nice pizza, hesitating when she thinks of the whole ‘the pizza is weeks old’ thing. But after her stomach makes a warning grumble, she shrugs and continues to eat it. So far, she isn’t feeling sick. So that must mean it’s safe to eat them.

But her stomach isn’t satisfied once she finishes, so she continues her raid, her stomach seeming impossible to satisfy.

The sound of objects moving and cabinets being opened and closed gets the grumpy law enforcer awake and twitching, growling softly to himself. Why the hell is she awake this early? Why the hell is she destroying his kitchen? Why the hell hasn’t someone come up with a cure for nightmares yet because they are the fucking worst things and the reason for his near-constant insomnia Goddammit.

“I swear to God, if I go in there and something’s on fire, we’re going to have some fucking issues on hand,” he grumbles to himself, rubbing his eyes before rolling himself out of bed to go see what the hell the psycho blind lady is up to.

He hits the ground and groans.

Today is going to be a long, long day.

Terezi had been happily sitting on a counter with a small pile of food beside her, munching on her snackables as though pleased with her success at turning his kitchen inside out. At the sound of a thump, she pauses, her head snapping towards the direction of his bedroom. “Karkles? You alright?”

Hearing the question, he grumbles an incoherent response, gesturing to be left alone even though she can’t actually see a gesture of any sort. Karkat Vantas is anything but a morning man. If three in the fucking morning can be considered ‘morning’.

He just hates waking up in general.

His grumbling makes her laugh, and she hops up and strolls over to him casually, bending down to mess up his hair. She was fully awake now, but going back to sleep still sounds like a great idea. “Just go back to sleep. I needed a quick snack. I’ll be back in a little, promise.”

“No, fuck that. I’m getting u-“ He’s interrupted by a yawn, which ends with a highly annoyed growling sound. And then silence. Apparently, his thought wasn’t important enough. And neither was waking up. Honestly, the man just wants to burrow back under the sheets to hibernate like a squirrel.

Karkat was over 200% done with the bullshit of being awake.

Terezi merely giggles some more, prodding at his cheek in amusement. His yawn has her yawning in a few seconds though, and she rubs her eyes. Suddenly, her stomach decides it’s had enough and is now full.

Seems like now is the perfect time to go back to sleep. “Y’know, I think I may just go to sleep now…”

“Then fuck being awake. Fuck moving, too.” His response is immediate, and he gropes blindly above him to grab the covers, pulling them off the bed and onto him. This floor is now his new best friend-bed-thing. It’s a real nice piece of floor. Top quality.

Perfect for sleeping on.

He’s not going to be moving until, preferably, mid-afternoon.

After a bit of figuring out what the hell just happened, Terezi rolls her eyes and flops onto the ground, snuggling her way against him and nudging. “Lemme in. I’m going back to sleep, too, Karkles. Or are you just going to let me freeze?” Her nudging continues, getting a little more forceful.

He ain’t sleeping until he lets her in, and that’s what she’s decided.

It doesn’t take too long for Karkat to realize that, other. So he opens her cocoon for her, mumbling, “C’mere.”

The offer is immediately taken, a little blind PI under his arm and nestled right up against his warmth. “Mmm… Warm…” Her triumphant grin melts into a soft smile, her eyes drifting closed. “Smells good, too…” She giggles a little bit, then manages to land a kiss on his cheek. “G’night, Karkat…”

And in another second, she’s passed out.

Karkat manages a half-assed mumble in response, the singular word sounding vaguely like ‘night’. Then he’s fast asleep as well, the arm that had been holding his cocoon open for her now wrapped around her to keep her pressed against him.

A couple hours later, Terezi groans softly as she wakes up, snuggling into him some more and moving her head just enough so she can sniff at his neck. A groggy smile pulls her lips up, and she shifts around some more to kiss his cheek.

Sleeping Beauty turns over in response to his wake-up kiss, covering his eyes with one of his arms to block the sunlight that was coming in from a nearby window. Being awake was frowned upon right now. As usual.

Terezi giggles as he moves, following after him and laying an arm and a leg over him to make sure he couldn’t get away. Her lips go back to his cheek, kissing a few times. “Come on, grumpy pants… It’s time to get up…”

As tempted as she is to just pull the covers off them, she’s too comfortable to want to. She has a cherry-scented heater, why would she want to move?

Said heater doesn’t want to move even more than her, but sadly his ears immediately pick up on the sound of what he’s assuming is his phone going off. He’s going to have to get that at some point, since it may be something important. Like, hell, a lead? No, that isn’t possible. They’re at a dead-end. Besides, on the off chance that it’s a lead, it’s still going to be there in a couple of hours, after he gets plenty of sleep.

The sound of the phone – and the grumpy asshole playing dead – makes her frown, but when an idea comes to mind she grins wide. She nips at his neck a few times, giggling. “You taste pretty good, Karkles.” If this doesn’t wake him up, then the phone definitely will. It keeps going off.

It’s probably just the station wondering how long they’re going to be missing their sheriff.

“Fuck- Cut it out!” Karkat stops playing dead to sit up and rub his neck where she had been biting, glaring down at her then over at his still-fucking-ringing phone, an annoyed growl in his throat. Christ, these people must be pretty desperate to get his attention. Maybe it’s actually something important?

Terezi just laughs at his reaction, shifting so she could rest her head in his lap and grin up at him. “Well, sorry, but you weren’t getting up! And you really do taste good.” She pulls him down by the collar and kisses him, then rolls off him and hops to her feet, strolling over to his phone. If he isn’t going to answer the damn thing to make it shut up, then she’s going to.

She opens her mouth to greet the other end in a way that would make it sound like they had done a little more than cuddle last night, but it snaps shut when she hears the words, “There’s been murders.”

She can’t move, she doesn’t even feel like she can breathe anymore. The officer on the phone doesn’t realize it isn’t his boss, relaying the information to Terezi. And she doesn’t tell him it isn’t Karkat, just takes all the information in, frozen in place with the sheer force of what she’s hearing.

Karkat stopped rubbing his eyes and looked over to Terezi when he feels the atmosphere change. What the hell was going on? She looks tense. It’s his work phone, the one that almost always is ringing.

What’s the worst that could happen? Someone being dead?

Wait. That’s actually a possibility. Shit.

SHIT. How could he have let his guard down like that?! There’s a serial killer on the loose!

“Sh-Sheriff… For you.” Terezi holds the phone out for him, distracting him from his thoughts. He scrambles up and takes it, acquainting himself with what all happened.

Terezi, on the other hand, was still stuck where she was. She can’t move. Her mind’s going too fast for her, over everything the officer said, over and over and over. Three more people were dead from multiple stab wounds. All because they can’t get their act together and figure out how to catch this guy.

They’re failing at their jobs, and more innocent people are dying because of it.

After getting caught up – and wishing he hadn’t been – Karkat takes a breath and looks over at Terezi. It looks like she’s taking it even worse than he is. “They want us at the scene of the crime.” His voice wavers, but it’s because of anger.

How could he have been so STUPID? How could he have let them leave without checking the other apartments?! This is HIS fault and he KNOWS it. He’s the certified officer here! He’s the one that knows how things are supposed to go! He should have at least made sure everybody was SAFE.

He digs his nails into his palms when he clenches his fists, trying to keep his rage under control so he didn’t flip a fucking table over.

He’ll tear shit up AFTER Terezi wasn’t around to notice that.

Terezi bites into her lip hard, trying to keep her mind from going even farther down the dark hole, then she nods. “Right… It’s our case and all…” She has to take a few breaths to clear her mind, trying to pull herself back together. This is just a murder case. Just a killer. A serial killer, but a killer all the same.

The bodies that are bloody and lifeless are all just part of the case. They aren’t her fault. No way were those innocent souls under her protection. Not at all.

Oh, who is she trying to fool? This is definitely her fault. Those people were under her protection, just like the first woman! And she let them die.

Some PI she is.

Karkat was heading towards the door as she berates herself, looking over at her once he was halfway out the door, a scowl on his face. “Hey, you coming or what?” He had a jacket on to cover his pajamas and a newspaper prime for throwing at people that questioned his fashion choices.

Basically, he was pretty much oblivious to the turmoil going on inside her mind.

She shakes herself and nods, exchanging his sweater for her jacket. She doesn’t want to be questioned on why she had his jacket. On any other normal business day, she’d wear it proudly and insinuate that they did all sorts of things. Today is not the day for that, though.

“Yeah, sorry. Just a little in shock.” She pulls a grin on and bounces past him, leaning on a wall in the outside hallway. “Hurry up, Karkles!” She chirps, then continues to bounce away.

If she keeps this up for long enough, eventually all the pain and guilt will go away. Right?

Karkat follows after her, mood sourer than usual for multiple reasons. For one, people are dead because of his incompetence. For two, he has to deal with the idiots from the station again. For three, their date is really canceled now. For four, the plan his flame-headed crush hatched is going to suck that much more.

Everything is against them at this point.

Once they’re in the car, he looks over at her, frowning a bit. Something seems… Off, right now. But then again, that’s to be expected. People are dead. That’s always a cause for an ‘off’ mood.

Sensing she was being stared at, Terezi grins over at him, probably with more ‘enthusiasm’ than she should have, considering what all they’ve learned in a very short amount of time. “So, what other details were there? Anything to help us with the case?” She buckles up as she asks the question, then begins to finger through her hair.

Just as with his sweater, she doesn’t want things to look suspiciously like they did the do last night. Nor like they slept on the floor cuddling.

“They said he left a note there. A fucking NOTE. It’s like the guy is TRYING to taunt us.” He huffs and scowls, gripping his steering wheel tightly. This asshat is getting far too bold for his own good, even if he’s succeeding in riling them up.

While it’s generally good for a killer to get too cocky, that also means this guy may be coming after them soon. Then again… The first note was about wanting to meet Terezi. Alone. Which didn’t happen.

Did that guy somehow know he had been there? Is that why he never showed?

Shit.

Things just keep getting worse.

Terezi’s grinding her teeth together, not noticing the fact that he hasn’t started to drive yet. Her eyebrows furrow together as she thinks, and there’s really only one thing she can think of that this new note would be over: Them not listening to his previous note properly.

So this really is her fault.

“Did they say what was written?” Despite trying her best to keep her voice even, there was a definite straight to it that she seriously hopes he didn’t catch.

“You’re blaming yourself for this, aren’t you?” It’s anything but an answer, but Karkat had finally managed to pull his head out of his ass and catch on to what was wrong with her. This needs to get solved. No way is he going to let her continue to think these murders were because of what she did.

Terezi flinches a bit at how blunt his question is, biting her lip again. For a second, she thinks about denying his accusation. But he would know she was lying. He’d be able to see right through her.

So, softly, she responds with, “But it IS my fault…” She stares down at her lap, scowling and very much displeased with how her voice sounds. But how is it supposed to sound? Hell if she knows. “And don’t try to convince me otherwise.”

“WHO’S the asshole that wouldn’t let you go to that place alone? If your answer is ‘Karkat Vantas’, then ding ding ding, congratulations! You’re right! He would have killed you if you went there alone. Then would’ve come to kill me, then would’ve gone and killed those other people, too! There was no way this wasn’t going to happen.”

“Don’t try to make me feel better, Karkat. I know this is my own damn fault. Just drive us there, I’ll deal with my emotions so I can actually do my job right. No one else has to die.” She grits her teeth and digs her fingers into her pants, infuriated with herself. This isn’t going to happen anymore. Not again.

She’s going to catch this guy or take him down however possible, even if it means she has to die for it. She isn’t a cop, she isn’t under a sworn oath to protect the public with her life, but she has the heart of one and would gladly do it. Not that she’s ever going to tell Karkat that. He’d throw a fit.

Figuring there’s nothing else to be done here, he does as she says and stops trying. He isn’t managing anything but annoying her. Maybe things would have gone better if he had just let her do her own thing on this, instead of shoving himself into it with her.

He pulls into the parking lot, taking note of all the cops swarming around. Hopefully these assholes aren’t going to ask him what he and Terezi have been doing.

Without saying anything, Terezi slips out of the car and immediately weaves her way through the officers, drubbing at their legs to get by if she needed to. She is in no mood to deal with their usual ‘ID’ bullshit. She just wants to catch the criminal and let him hang.

Metaphorically, of course. Hanging isn’t a legitimate form of execution anymore. Unfortunately.

She can at least fantasize, and that makes getting through this easier.

After snapping and glaring and insinuating that ‘her time of the month’ is coming up soon, she’s got the area cleared out of officers not wanting to be in the way of something like an angry PI. So she sets to work, pulling on the gloves she had snagged from an officer she drubbed her way past. She’s careful as she works, her nose crinkled up at the strong smell of blood, and makes sure to not move anything from its original spot as she works.

This guy is definitely pissed at the two of them. Or, well, her. She’s the one that didn’t listen to him. At least, she’s pretty sure that’s how he’s going to look at it. He’s bound to be planning something now, some way to get back at her.

While she was dealing with that, Karkat was dealing with his officers. He asked questions, mostly about where the fuck that letter went, and got asked questions, mostly about Terezi. His response was the same for each question about her: A calm and collected, “Fuck off.” He isn’t going to be dealing with something like that, especially not when they’re in a situation like this.

After a while of searching, he eventually finds someone that’s useful to him. Even though he’d much rather have gone with Terezi to check out the crime scene, he figured it’d be a good idea to let her do her thing. Let her cool down and think. He’s fairly certain he’d just be in the way.

It doesn’t take long at all for Terezi to get overwhelmed by everything. She heads outside, slinking around the cops to avoid their interrogations and scoldings, and rests herself in the shade, a frown plastered on her face. She needs to cast aside emotions and think. What has she found out?

For one, the killer is much bolder now. There were far too many stab wounds for the killing to be solely for killing. He made a show of it. The injuries weren’t in any spot that would be fatal on its own, they were in places that would hurt the most. They were meant to cause a painful and slow death. Painful meant there were screams.

“VANTAS!”

As Terezi was thinking to herself, Karkat had found himself the note by heckling some of the other officers. Before he can ask why the fuck they didn’t hand it over immediately, he heard his name screamed. He cringes. Then he grabs the note and sprints off too where she is, genuinely terrified of what she’d do to him if he didn’t respond quickly.

The second she smells him, she asks, “Who reported the murder?” Her tone doesn’t show a hint of their relationship, all professionalism and sharpness. Just like it was when they still hated each other, just like it was when she was banging on his door. “Or was there no report and it was a complaint?” Having to make that suggestion makes her stomach clench and churn. She doesn’t want to have to think about what went down last night to have caused a noise complaint.

“He did.” That was another piece of information he had collected. “He used one of the girl’s phones after he was finished.” After realizing he was slouching, he attempts to straighten his back, as though Terezi would be able to tell he was slouching.

Apparently, not slouching was easier said than done. The man is going to be hunchbacked by the time he’s old and wrinkly, he’s sure of it.

He snaps himself back to focus by mentally slapping himself, returning to slouching. Thinking the case over and ignoring her sharp tone were much more important than his bad posture. They have a case to crack, and he has a private investigator to keep from snapping. Seems like it’s his turn to try to keep her stable. It’s about time they switched rolls, anyways.

Terezi may try to push his buttons all the Goddamn time, but she always makes sure he never goes off the deep-end.

Said private investigator actually twitched at the piece of information. This asshole really IS getting cocky, if he’s calling himself in. And he’s smart. Unless the cops here really are utter morons, there weren’t any fingerprints on any of the phones. Or anywhere, really, otherwise they would’ve been reported already. The guy either wiped the place down, wore gloves or used some other technique to keep his prints from getting on anything.

This guy is really, really good.

In a moment of paranoia, her mind stops and her nose twitches, sniffing at the air as though she would be able to smell him.

When she doesn’t get anything, she slowly relaxes. He may not be here, but he’s still out there. Somewhere. Waiting for them to make a mistake so he can kill them.

“Alright, so the bastard used one of the victim’s phones.” Emotions, Pyrope. Get them in check. “Were there any complaints from the neighbors? Reports of screams?”

“Maybe? Probably? You didn’t give me enough time to get all the details from the morons that work from me. I haven’t even read the note yet.” Speaking of which, he should probably do that. Being that Terezi was far too focused on the complaint thread, she had completely forgotten about the note until then.

Karkat unfolds the note and glances it over before looking at her. “Need me to read it out loud?”

Terezi narrows her eyes and huffs, “What do you think? Unless the guy put in some Braille for me, yes, I need you to read it.” She wasn’t meaning to be harsh or snippy, she really wasn’t. She was just really, really strained right now and the fact that this piece of shit was TOYING with them didn’t help it a single bit.

Deciding it was a better idea to not start an argument over things, he reads the note. “It says, ‘Next time you don’t follow directions there will be two new bodies. Take a guess who.’”

Well, that was great. Terrifying and creepy son of a fuck.


	12. Chapter 12

Terezi shivers, resisting the urge to hug herself. That was not the kind of note she was hoping for. She doesn’t even know what she was hoping for, she just knows that she did NOT want it to say that. She has to stay strong. This is just a killer. Just a desperate killer trying to tie up loose ends. A very SMART killer trying to tie up loose ends.

Dammit.

“Alright, so we have to go with the bait plan. If he sets up something else, we have to listen to him. I don’t want there to be any more bodies.” Especially not Karkat’s. She really doesn’t want Karkat to die. “Did your cops check for prints?”

“They aren’t THAT incompetent,” he grumps, pausing for a second before giving the verdict. “They dusted and found nothing. And since there’s not even a suspect, there’s no point in doing a handwriting test. We’ll hold onto it just in case something comes up, though.” He pauses again. “I’m guessing I’m not allowed to come as backup this time, huh?”

He didn’t like the thought of that. Leaving her to her own devices to deal with a serial killer out for their blood… It made his gut twist and his chest ache.

Terezi hesitates before answering, then decides to just skip over it. “There aren’t even any partial prints?”

“There were some discarded gloves outside with a smiley face drawn on them if that counts.” She isn’t the only one that can avoid a question, but at least he’s partially answering it.

There’s a slight twitch on Terezi’s face, and she clenches her hands into tight fists. “A smiley face?” She’s practically growling the words. It was tempting to laugh, to try getting the stress out that way, but she’s already seen as crazy enough and laughing at a sad crime scene like this one wouldn’t do anything to help her.

But after a second, she realizes she doesn’t care about what she’s seen as. She’s stressed, so she’s going to laugh. And that’s exactly what she does. She lets out a small cackle, feeling better fairly quickly. Ah, laughter truly is the best medicine, even if it makes you seem batshit crazy.

Karkat just stared at her. This, this right here, is exactly why part of his brain is still terrified shitless of her. He mentally shakes himself, then continues with just talking about the note. That’s the best thing to do when his partner is laughing like a maniac, right? Right. “We’re still bringing it to the lab for possible traces of DNA, but that’ll take a while and it’s a longshot. We don’t have the luxury of time or the luxury of hoping.”

Hearing that doesn’t make Terezi feel much better, but at least getting that laugh out helped a bit. “Well, while you guys are doing that, I’m going to do what a PI always does: Work her own way. I’m going to check the scene again, you find out some more information.”

And without a kiss or a lick or anything else, she’s heading back to the scene to sniff over everything. She spends a good half hour there, gnashing her teeth at any cops that come to close to her.

After informing his officers of how much longer he’ll be out of the office – and tactfully avoiding any questions or complaints about Terezi – Karkat opts to go sit in his car to wait on her. There wasn’t anything more he could do here, and he knows that right now, she would rather be left alone. That and one of his officers told him about the ‘mess’ that was in there. He can’t stand blood in the slightest, which is odd considering his line of work, but that’s just how it is.

If he can avoid blood, he’ll do it.

Once Terezi was satisfied with searching the scene once more – and coming up with nothing – she heads right for the car, ignoring any officer that got in her way. She slides into the passenger side, immediately addressing him. “Did you find anything out? Or are your goons just as useless as ever?”

Immediately after saying that, she knows she was being too harsh. She was frustrated and afraid, sure, but that didn’t mean she should be taking it out on him. 

In response, Karkat crosses his arms and glares. Maybe she’ll be able to feel the burning coming from his eyes. “Pretty fucking useless. Apparently not everyone can be as perfect as Ms. Pyrope. Our mistake. Won’t happen again.” His voice is laden with sarcasm, making it more than obvious for her to pick it up on. “Or maybe someone would have been able to FIND something if you hadn’t almost bitten their fucking head off when they tried to do their job.”

Oh yeah, she totally crossed a line. While she wants to apologize, the inner voice that tells her to never back down was winning. “Actually, you’re right, my track record kind of WAS perfect. Before this case, I have never once had any issues.” She would have left it at that, figuring he would get what she was implying with her words, but that same voice from before had her continue.”

“Don’t forget whose case this originally was, Vantas.”

“Why don’t you get someone ELSE to drive your ass around then?!” Karkat shouted back at her, biting his lip the second he was done shouting. Shit. He shouldn’t have said that. He immediately regretting yelling at her like that. What if she actually goes and does that? What if she leaves him and gets another ride?

Terezi doesn’t say anything. Is he being serious? Does he really not want her around anymore? She chews on her lip, turning to blindly stare out the window as she thinks. Should she actually leave…? The more she thinks, the safer it would be for him. For both of them. The killer wouldn’t be able to get them both at the same time.

And if, somehow, she does end up dead… It wouldn’t hurt him as much. Right?

Her hand reaches for the handle, but she stops herself. She doesn’t want to leave. She really doesn’t want to.

Karkat had turned away, not wanting to watch her leave. What has he done? They’re on a case! They can’t be getting all emotional like this with something so dangerous happening around them! But he just couldn’t keep his mouth shut, could he? He hurt her, and now she’s going to leave him.

After a few more seconds, Terezi decides something: he’s dumb, she’s dumb, and fighting like this is stupid. So she gets out of the car. But she doesn’t go off to find herself a new ride. Oh no. She goes around the car to his side, pulls open his door, grabs his collar, and pulls him out.

Instead of saying anything, she kisses him. Hard. It’s more like her smashing her face against his, and Karkat is genuinely shocked by it. There’s a lot of things he deals with in his job, but sudden crazy hot private investigators pulling him out of his care just to smash their mouths together is not something that’s common. Not in the slightest.

“You are just… You’re such a fucking idiot,” she mumbles, her voice shaking, then she kisses him again. God does she hope he hadn’t noticed her voice.

The sheriff took his sweet time with figuring out what to do about his situation. He had been planning to go lay on his floor for six hours, torn between hating himself, going to fix things with her and going to lure the killer out with his own body. He hadn’t been planning on this.

Eventually, though, he kicked his ass into gear. He kisses her back and hugs her against him, hoping his tight grip isn’t crushing her. He was terrified. He almost lost her.

Never again. He is never letting that happen again.

Neither of them pull away for a while, kissing each other and not thinking about anything other than them. In this moment, there is no killer. No murdering, no fear of death, no corpses left by an unknown man. It’s just the two of them.

But eventually Terezi breaks the kiss, just so she can push her face into his neck, clutching his collar tighter than before. “Sorry… This case… Those people… This is all my fault… I was supposed to get this solved before anyone else died… Now there’s four innocent lives gone because of me… And you’re in danger now…” Her voice was shaking even more, and she bites her lip to try fighting back the tears. No way does she want to start crying.

“Fuck- Terezi, are you- No, don’t cry. Come on, please don’t cry?” Karkat was talking as though asking her is going to keep the tears at bay. Being the fumbling idiot he is, he was half-hoping it would happen like that. He reaches up to pet her hair, figuring maybe that would actually do something for her.

Those deaths fucked her up more than he had thought. They fucked her up more than they fucked him up. How did he never notice that? Was he just too bothered by it to tell? This guy needs to be behind bars. Now.

“The sooner we arrest this shitheaded asshole and the jury declares his sorry ass guilty, the better.”

Karkat’s sudden words break into her moment of worry and self-doubt, and Terezi giggles just to show it. Her fingers let go of his collar, just so she can hug onto his neck. Her face moves from its spot so she’s instead nuzzling at his jaw, her cheek resting on her arm. “I know… But the biggest issue is trying to arrest him… But… It’s not like that’s going to bring them back…”

Well, he tried to make it better. When she whimpers, he kisses her forehead with a little sigh, oblivious to her yelling at herself to get back together.

“I don’t wanna lose you…” Obviously she didn’t win the argument. She’s still on edge and pretty vulnerable right now.

He sighs and leans his head on hers for a few seconds. “Worry for yourself. I’ll be fine. He’d be fucking crazy to try messing with me.” He was trying to convince her just as much as he was trying to convince himself. After a few more seconds, he lets go of her and nudges her back towards the car. Maybe if they get away from the crime scene, she’ll start to feel better. They have work to do, anyways.

“Just get back in the car. Losing you isn’t on my to-do list, either, Pyrope. Got it? No one is going to lose anyone. I promise.” Well that was a dumb thing to promise. He can’t do that.

He doesn’t notice Terezi flinch. In her mind, she’s thinking of the girl she promised to keep safe. The dead girl. She doesn’t say anything though, just sighing and going back to her side of the car so she can slip into the passenger’s seat.

“Alright… Let’s go get ready for this.” She sighs again as she buckles up, stopping once she tastes blood. Oops.

Once Karkat’s back in the car, he starts it solely for the heater. Then he turns to his partner. “We have to keep in contact somehow. Not to mention the fact that we still need proof that he is ACTUALLY the killer. Right now, even if we catch him, do you think there’s enough proof for a conviction? This guy has covered his shit really well.” They’re going to need a confession out of this guy.

While the sheriff decided now would be a great time to plan, Terezi was sucking on her lip to stop the bleeding. It isn’t often that she gets so nervous and so afraid that she’ll actually cut her lip. “Well… You could always put a bug on me. I’d record the conversation. There won’t be anything visual, but the audio should be enough. And as for other proof… I could probably needle the information out of him? He’s gotten cocky, he’s bound to mess up eventually. Cockiness does that.”

As another thought comes to mind, she has to resist the urge to bite her lip again. “If he finds it… The bug, I mean… I’ll make sure it’s just me that gets punished. I’ll say I was recording it strictly for myself. That we had a fight here, split off, and haven’t talked since.” It looks enough like that, after how she’s been acting towards him. It made her feel bad, but at least they can use that to their advantage.

She reaches her hand out to his, takes it, then gently squeezes it. “I can do this. I’ve got this.”

“You’ve got to be kidding me. Do you really think I’m just going to sit back while you get hurt? I think it’s been established that he doesn’t just kill them, Terezi. He lets them die slowly. He WANTS them to die slowly. I’m not letting you bleed to death or be part of whatever this sick fuck’s plan is. If he finds the bug, I’m going in. I don’t care what you say.” He had been quiet all while she talked, not moving. Just processing what she’s said.

But now that she isn’t talking, it’s his turn, and he’s sounding serious. It’s his professional voice, the one he’s using when he isn’t yelling at his officers. He’s perfectly capable of holding out in a fight – fist or gun – and there is no way in hell he is letting this piece of shit take her away from him.

Terezi sighs and shakes her head, then unbuckles herself and leans over so she can run her fingers through his hair. “If he does get to me before you can come and be my knight, I hope he goes for the more painful, slow death. That’ll give you time.” She offers him a little smile, surprised by how much she’s liking this side of him. It was different, and it was proper authoritative. Seems he can actually take charge when he needs to.

As much as Karkat doesn’t like the thought of her suffering, he knows it’s true. That doesn’t mean he has to mention it, though. “When are we doing this?” He doesn’t mention their date, either. Now is not the right time. They’re both disgruntled, and if one thing goes wrong when he mentions that, they could be at each other’s throats again.

“Soon. Definitely soon. If we can get this planned out and set up… Maybe tonight? I could be going back to my apartment because of our little spat… If I just act upset enough, it should definitely be believable… What do you think?” Tonight… Before, she had been hoping for tonight to be a date. In a sense, it still is, but it isn’t with the right guy or for the right reasons. 

It was completely unrelated, but her mentioning the ‘spat’ made him remember something. “I’m going to be getting a million calls about what happened between us. Everyone in the office is a nosy fuck, and if Kanaya finds out…” He groans and closes his eyes. “Which she is GOING to do… I’m going to be on the phone for hours, dammit.”

Deciding things need a good lift, Terezi grins and leans over, brushing her fingers against his arm. “Not if your girlfriend’s getting needy.” The whole effect was kind of ruined by the slight blush on her cheeks, but it’s not like she can help it. It’s weird to call herself a girlfriend, especially his.

It’s weird for Karkat, too, as his cheeks flare red and his voice cracks. “Girlfriend?” He stares at her, the touch on his arm completely lost because of his surprise. “You mean- You’re-“ He cuts off, not wanting to fuck up by saying anything.

“I-I meant, um-“ She stops talking, realizing she’s kind of painted herself into a corner here. What is she doing? They never really talked about this! There’s never been time! Hell, there still isn’t time. They have a serial killer on the loose, and here they are, figuring out their relationship. Goddammit. “I-If you want…?”

“I- I mean- Fuck, it’d be amazing, but I don’t think you understand what kind of shit you’re getting yourself into.” His face only continues to get hotter, color brighter and brighter as he talks. “Like, holy fucking shit, you’ll have to meet my asshole friends and actually deal with my douchebaggery, and- and-“ He putters out, knowing there’s so much more he can go on about but he sees the look on his partner’s face and stops.

It was a mischievous grin, perfectly matching her mischievous personality. “Shut up, Karkles. I know full well what I’m getting myself into. We’ve spent the past two days together practically non-stop. I know you pretty well, and I mean, come on, last night was awesome.” Her grin stretches more, and her blush colors a bit darker. Last night definitely had been nice.

“Besides! I wouldn’t mind meeting your friends! I think I’d get along with them very well.” Her grin sharpens a bit into a dangerous smirk. “Just think about it. Your girlfriend being close with your friends, knowing them well… Think of all that juicy gossip she could get.” She lets out a little cackling laugh, leaving Karkat to groan.

“Fucking perfect,” he sighs, shaking his head. But despite his reaction, there was a hint of a smile on his face. That wouldn’t be too bad.

She giggles some more, grinning happily at him. “You know you’re going to love having me in your life! Now, hurry up, Mr. Sheriff! We have shit to do!” They’ve wasted enough time doing this.

“Yeah, yeah. I’m on it.” He rolls his eyes at her and drove, taking his sweet time so he doesn’t have to face what’s coming. Yes, he knows it has to be done. Yes, he knows it’s better to speed a bit more than it is to be going slower. But he doesn’t want to continue. He doesn’t want to dress Terezi up just to have her get killed.

Unfortunately, procrastination doesn’t last forever. They were at his apartment soon enough, but seeing Terezi’s still-pink cheeks helped relax him a bit.

Her mind was reeling between knowing he was stalling and the whole girlfriend thing that happened. She shakes her head once she’s out of the car and bounces over to him, hooking her arm in his and dragging him towards his building. She wants to get this stuff over with; he wants to drag it out to keep the worst from happening.

But she’s a strong blind girl, and it resulted in him being dragged to his room. So with a bit of a resigned sigh, he unlocks it. Then immediately wonders why it’s so cold. Was a window open? He doesn’t leave windows open. Did someone else leave a window open? Oh shit, oh shit, oh-

“Karkat?” Terezi was previously wearing a very amused grin, but now she was looking worried. “You okay…? You look kind of spooked.” She brushes herself up against his arm, then hugs it.

He shakes his head of the stupid paranoid thoughts, knowing his apartment is fine and that he’s just overthinking shit again. “Nothing. I’m fine.”

She doesn’t seem convinced in the slightest, but Karkat keeps going. He doesn’t want to continue on with that previous topic. “Alright. So. How are we going to bug you? It can’t be obvious or anything otherwise this entire plan is fucked.” Way to go, Vantas. State the obvious.

This is going to suck.


	13. Chapter 13

Terezi frowns at his question. Wasn’t it fairly obvious how she wants to be chipped? There’s really only one way to do it to ensure it’s completely hidden. “I was thinking a little chip in my clothes. Literally in them. After our last ‘date’ I’m sure he’s going to pat me down and check my pockets. Make sure I don’t have anything on me.” She kisses his cheek, then bounces off to go collect her clothes from the previous day.

“What?! No! Don’t let him fucking touch you!” Karkat goes after her, a very pissed look on his face. No way in hell is he going to let that piece of shit touch her! Is he getting kind of possessive? Probably.

She stops and turns to look at him, confusion wrinkling her forehead. “What’re you getting so uptight about? It’s obvious he’s going to. Honestly, I’d be pretty surprised if he didn’t.”

Karkat still isn’t pleased. Not in the slightest. He’s slowly convincing himself that it isn’t because of his possessiveness, it’s because this is a perfectly normal reaction to not wanting her to get touched by a Goddamn serial killer. “If it’s a date, maybe you should dress up like it’s one.” Of course, this is just his way of trying to make a joke, even if it was a pretty pathetic attempt.

Despite it being a joke, she took it fairly seriously in the sense that it sounded like a pretty good idea. She isn’t a model or anything, but what serial killer would expect their target to be well-dressed? Granted, they aren’t going to a planned thing or anything – this entire thing is resting on the killer waiting for her at her apartment. If he isn’t there… Well, that gives them more time to plan. But she really just wants to get this all over with.

“That couldn’t hurt. I mean, it isn’t going to make him more likely to attack me or anything. Great idea!” She grins wide at him, bouncing in place. “I’m gonna need to get some clothes, though…” She doesn’t exactly have date clothes. As a busy private investigator, she has no time for going out on dates or even trying to find someone to go on a date with.

In the midst of weighing pros and cons, an idea comes to mind. “Would it be odd to hide the bug in my bra?” Even though the question was strange, she holds a straight face, seriously contemplating it. “He isn’t likely to check there, and it shouldn’t be noticeable if it’s done right.”

Karkat stares at her. Previously, he’d been trying to figure out whether to talk her out of it or help her with the plan. But when she asks that question, all thoughts related to that stop. She’s set on that. “Would it be odd? Yes. Is it a fucking brilliant idea? Also yes.” Sometimes he can forget that past all of her insanity is a genius of a woman. So with a sigh, he runs his fingers through his hair. She is definitely set on doing this.

“Great!” She lets out a delighted squeal, happy he’s going along with this and completely oblivious to his intention on making it a joke. “So, I’ll be dressing up and have a bug in my bra. Sounds good! We should probably go get some clothes for me now. Just get it out of the way. If we can get this done tonight, then-“ She stops in her tracks, realizing something. She doesn’t know how to bug a bra, and she doubts he knows how to. Didn’t he mention having a techie friend? “Hey, would your friend that looked at the bugs know how to plant one in a bra? Before tonight?”

“Depends on if he feels like it.” He gives a shrug, knowing there’s no way to know for sure. Whenever it comes to asking Sollux, it depends on his mood. “We’re gonna have to explain, too. He’ll refuse to do it if he doesn’t know why.” Even though the asshole never cares, he just likes to piss Karkat off with his questions. Then he’ll do it because his agony puts him in a good mood.

She snickers a little, thinking of something she could say that would really put Karkat in a bad spot with his friends. But she keeps it to herself. “Since I have to deal with the killer, you get to deal with your moody-sounding friend.” As though it’ll make everything all better, she sends a sugary grin his way.

He stoically glares. “Well fuck. I can’t tell which would be worse: Enraged psychopath or moody Sollux.” It was a dry kind of sarcasm, since he genuinely found it a pretty tough call. But he gets no choice in the decision-making process. Terezi’s set on what she wants to do. Despite his humor being humorless, he could feel the plan coming together very well. This is sounding like it may work. She may actually live.

Along with catching this asshole, one of his primary goals is keeping his girlfriend – holy shit that feels weird to think – alive and unharmed.

Terezi cackles and wraps her arms around his neck, pulling him down and licking his face. “Do you really want me to do it? I can just go ahead and start the rumor mill for you.”

“What?! No! Fuck no. I’ve got this.” He glares down at her, wiping his cheek of her saliva. He was trying so, so hard to be mad at her for such an invasion of privacy, but Goddammit she’s adorable when she looks that happy.

She merely laughs and kisses his cheek a few times, still holding onto him. “Well, you can have fun with arguing with him while I look for clothes to wear. Now let’s get going!”

She isn’t the shopping sort. Not in the slightest. The only reason she’s this excited about it is because she’ll be going out with Karkat. Screw thinking about the killer. She’s practically numb to the danger at this point, she’s worried about it so much. Maybe this short little shopping spree will help her keep her mind off the dangers that await her.

Karkat just rolls his eyes and ducks out of her arms, taking her hand and leading them back off to his car so they can go get this over with. “You know, something tells me he’s not just going to have a spare bra lying around to bug.”

The moment he says that, he knew he should’ve just kept quiet.

Cackling, Terezi slips out of his grip and dashes ahead, turning to grin wide at him. “Then let’s go buy one! You can help me pick out a nice-looking one.” She winks at him, then sprints off to get to his car, only running ahead so he can’t see the pink on her cheeks.

Karkat had stopped and was now staring at her, his face colored bright. Oh holy fuck. Today just went from depressing and frustrating to worrisome and even more frustrating for entirely different reasons. Going to a friend’s house with a new girlfriend and a bra is generally not something that’s done. He’s definitely going to get some shit from Sollux.

Once he finally makes his way to his car, he doesn’t get a chance to unlock it and let them in because she pulls him over and gives him a kiss.

“Don’t worry. I’ll make sure it isn’t TOO weird of a bra,” she snickers, kissing his cheek again. “Now come on, hurry up! We’ve got shopping to do!” She bounces away then to the other side of the car, waiting for the sound to signify the doors unlocking.

After several seconds of trying to compose himself, he finally manages to unlock the car. Terezi’s in immediately, bouncing in excitement; once Karkat finally gets in, he’s tempted to bang his head against the steering wheel repeatedly.

But then he decided to just drive. “What do you even mean by that? Aren’t all bras the SAME?”

Oh fucking hell, are they really going to talk about this?

“Of course not!” She grins over at him, giggling in excitement. Is it overdone? Of course it is. But it’s one of the few ways she’s able to keep her mind off of the life-threatening danger she’s going to be putting herself into, so it’s what she’s going to stick to.

Hopefully he doesn’t question her.

By the time they’re in the parking lot of some lingerie-type store Kanaya constantly drags his ass to, Karkat was fully done with life. They just got here, haven’t even started their shopping, and he’s already done. Shopping for bras with a blind girl – girlfriend or not – is not exactly what he thought this partnership thing would lead to.

The moment the car is off, Terezi’s out of the car and cackling. “Ready to help me find a bra, Karkles?” She grins at him, leaning on her cane and peeking into the car.

Alright, Pyrope. This is the time to start pretending like you know what you’re doing. Generally she just grabs whatever she can find in her size, not bothering with figuring out what it looks like. It’s gotten her some weird things before, but so long as it fits and it’s cheap enough, she isn’t going to complain.

“No.”

His response is short and blunt, his eyes glaring at her. But he gets out anyways. Why? Because he knows she would just drag him out through the passenger door.

“Well too bad!” She hops around to the other side and grabs his hand, practically dragging him to the store. The sooner she can do this, the less likely she is to get all red and blushy.

“We don’t have to make this a big fucking thing, right? You’re just going to grab something and get the fuck out, right?” Somehow he knows it isn’t going to be that simple, but some dumb, naïve part of him that it was worth asking.

Terezi cackles and kisses his cheek. “Nope! I have to make sure it’s a classy bra! After all, it’s kind of a date.” She grins sharply at him, then tightens her grip on his hand and sets to searching out a good bra to use.

Half an hour later, the two are back in Karkat’s car, the blind girl hugging the bag with a new bra and the sheriff staring at the steering wheel. “See? It wasn’t THAT bad!”

“That was the single most traumatizing experience of my entire shitty existence and I am never, EVER setting foot in a fucking store like that ever again.” Okay, so maybe he was exaggerating a bit much. That wasn’t his first time in there, obviously, but that was the first time he was forced to actually pay attention to shit.

And to make things even better, his phone had died because he was an idiot and hasn’t charged it in fuck-knows-how-long. So he isn’t going to be able to call and give Sollux a head’s up. “It’d be great if I could just drop you off at a clothing store or whatever so you can get clothes WITHOUT dragging my sorry ass with you so I can go ahead and get that bra bugged.”

Terezi laughs, but her hold on the bag tightens. “Nope! I can’t do the clothing shopping myself! It’ll be way too obvious that I’m blind! So you’ve gotta come with me. Besides! I have to start meeting your friends at some point, right?” Granted, a first impression by way of needing a bra chipped isn’t exactly the ideal, but they aren’t really getting a choice. So Karkat’s just going to have to suck it up and deal with it.

“You just want to drag me on another fucking shopping trip, don’t you?” He glares at her, then huffs and starts his car. “We might as well get that done now. You can change at Sollux’s place, I doubt he’d give a single shit.”

She laughs again and shakes her head. “No, no! That isn’t it this time! Well, okay, that’s a perk, but I need to make sure the outfit’s alright. After all, if things go right, maybe I can use it for one of our actual dates.” Or burn the clothes with the memories, but she’ll decide once it gets to that.

“Alright, well, where does somebody even shop for this type of shit?” Karkat must sound like an utter idiot, and he knows it. It’s not that hard to find a decent clothing store. For men, at least. He just gets whatever fits him so long as it doesn’t look like shit. Granted, Kanaya usually forces him to return it and then sews him something else that she thinks is better.

“Just go to a department store, genius!” She snorts and rolls her eyes, buckling herself up. “I don’t need anything too fancy, after all. Besides, I’ve got no idea where we are. You drove us here, and I typically take a taxi to places I don’t visit daily, anyways.”

He groans and starts the car, glancing over at her before shaking his head and heading towards the nearest department store he can think of. “That can’t be safe.”

After just a few seconds of driving, he realizes something: “Fuck, I’m gonna have to be your chauffeur now, aren’t I? The hell even is a ‘chauffeur’? Some fancy-ass name for a French taxi driver? No, fuck that shit.”

Terezi snickers at him, rolling her eyes. “No, you’re just the sweet boyfriend that drives his blind girlfriend around.” She grins at him, hopping out the moment they’ve stopped and going around to pull him out of the car. “Now c’mon!”

Karkat was determined to not make this whole dumb ordeal last longer than necessary, but his blind partner was hell-bent on making it last longer than his thin strand of sanity could last. By the time the two were out of the store, he was on the verge of tearing out his hair and she was grinning like a proud puppy, clearly happy with her purchase.

That was probably the only reason he didn’t completely snap: Terezi is happy and the quest is complete. Never again will he have to dredge through that hell.

“Let’s get to your friend’s place! We’ve still got a bra that needs to be bugged!” She grins up at him, grabs his hand with the one that wasn’t holding clothing bag, then proceeds to drag him back towards the car. If it wasn’t for needing to practically drag him, she’d be skipping.


	14. Chapter 14

Sollux Captor had half a mind to ignore the incessant pounding on his door. His apartment is an absolute mess. There’s delivery Chinese take-out everywhere (boxes, sauce packets, sauce itself in some places, it really is a mess). After he found out about the new Chinese restaurant, he’s been practically living off the shit. Not that it tasted like shit, it was absolute heaven to a man as anti-cooking and anti-going-out-anywhere-ever-for-any-reason-at-all. But he doesn’t know the names of any of the items, just the numbers and what they taste like.

Like the sweet, honey-flavored chicken thing. That’s delicious. And also the majority of what he eats nowadays, but it’s got meat and rice so clearly it isn’t unhealthy. Better than a lot of the shit that he ate before.

Thinking about the delicious food made him realize something rather important: he gives no fucks about what his apartment looks like because it’s HIS apartment. People can deal with the mess it is because he’s fine with it and it’s home so if anyone has a problem with it they can fuck right on out his door. So, rather reluctantly because his door is still being beaten on, he moves from his position of upside down with his legs hanging off the couch and head on the ground.

He’s got a pretty damn good idea as to who the asshole at his door is.

“Jethuth fuck, KK, give me a thecond here!” He’s not even at the door yet, but he doesn’t need to look out his peephole to know he’s right. Nobody else bangs that angrily or consistently. Consistently angrily. Whatever.

He drags himself off the ground (he had landed in a rather awkward position and it was getting pretty uncomfortable anyways) and over to the door, squinting the moment he opens his apartment to the outside. Fuck, the hallway is bright. Is this what the sun is like?

Maybe his apartment is just really dark.

Who’s the chick? And why is she hanging around with the angry asshole that is Karkat Vantas?

The moment the door was open, Terezi was sniffing and even more eager to meet Karkat’s friend. Is that honey? Talk about a very sweet scent. She kind of likes it. It isn’t nearly as great as Karkat’s, though. “Nice to meet you! I’m Terezi Pyrope, I work as a private investigator and am currently dating this asshole we both put up with. We kind of need you to bug something for us.” Knowing Karkat, he isn’t going to be straight to the point with what they need. Besides, this is HER case. She’s merely allowing the sheriff to work with her, after all.

Maybe she should elaborate a little more instead of just popping out of nowhere and requesting a stranger to put a bug in a newly-bought bra.

“It’s a highly-confidential matter that the police need help with, which is why I’m here.” If she mentioned out loud that she was really the one in charge of the case, Karkat would shit himself. And as funny as that would be, they kind of just need to get this whole thing wrapped up and finished so she can stop worrying about whether they’re going to live until tomorrow.

And now that she’s explained the situation so ‘perfectly’, she sets to tapping Sollux’s frame, gentle and memorizing his form. It’s what she does with anyone new that she meets - Karkat had to deal with it, and he isn’t envious of Sollux in the slightest.

Nor is he happy with how Terezi left him to explain what’s really going on here. She’s clearly pleased with himself, based on the shit-eating grin she’s wearing, but he sure as hell isn’t. But before he can clean up the shit she left for him, Sollux interjects with something very, very important and that he’s been hung up on since he heard it:

“KK hath a girlfriend? Holy thit.” And why is she touching him? With a CANE of all things? What the hell is in the bag next to her feet? Should he just shut the door or would that get him shot by this crazy chick with a blind cane that KEEPS TOUCHING HIM.

While Karkat is pouting over the fact that it’s so shocking for him to have a girlfriend, Sollux is giving him a pathetic look asking ‘what the fuck do I do about this’.

It seems as though Karkat’s time to shine with an actual proper explanation has finally come, even though he’s still miffed over the fact that it’s a shock for him to have a girlfriend. Maybe he shouldn’t be so upset. After all, up until recently he couldn’t stand a single person.

Well, that’s still true.

Terezi’s just a special case.

Everybody else can still go fuck themselves into an alley and stay there.

“It’s a bra, by the way. The ‘something’ that we need to have bugged. Just- Don’t fucking ask more than that. It’s for a case, I swear, she wasn’t shitting about that.”

“Thay pleathe.”

“What.”

“I thaid- thay ‘pleathe’.”

“I’m not- No, fuck you. I am not going to start on this begging bullshit!”

“Then you’re jutht going to have to find thomeone elthe to bug a bra for you becauthe I thure ath hell am not gonna do it.” Sollux crosses his arms, defiant, and just smirks. He’s gotten fairly used to the cane, even though it DID almost knock his glasses off.

Terezi had stopped listening to them a while ago, but once she finished with learning Sollux she really had nothing else to do.

“-not MY fucking bra, Captor! It’s Terezi’s! I’m manly as fuck and you’re going to bug the Goddamn thing!” She could practically smell the cherry anger flushing Karkat’s cheeks, and it makes her snicker.

“I apologithe for KK’th thtupidity. I don’t know how you put up with him.” Sollux had completely switched who he was talking to, figuring the pointless bickering had to stop. At some point, he realized that the sooner he got this over with, the sooner he could go back to sleep.

Karkat isn’t done quite yet, though. “HEY. NO. FUCK THAT. I APOLOGIZE FOR MY OWN STUPIDITY.”

“Oh my fucking God.”

They’re the most surprised they’re friends. This is how most every interaction with them goes, but they’ve never once not been friends. Nobody knows how it works, even them.

Terezi completely broke into giggles, leaning on her cane to make sure she doesn’t lose her balance. It seems as though she’s decided to date a guy that’s already married. After a while of their continued bickering - because Karkat refuses to let things end - she eventually gets bored. Sure, a few times she wanted to interject, but they seem to be doing just fine on their own. They’re having a moment.

So she just slips into Sollux’s apartment, tapping around at everything and enjoying the sweet scent of honey chicken. Maybe that’s why he smells so much like honey. It seems to be the only thing he eats. Not that she blames him, it smells delicious. It’s kind of making her want some. Maybe that’ll be their date, after all of this is over with. If this ever gets over with, that is.

At this point, she’s more worried about those two getting to work. Screw the killer, she’s going to end up dying of boredom soon enough. Wandering this guy’s apartment is fun for only so long.

She bounces back over to the entrance, figuring that maybe if she calls out Sollux while subtly making fun of his lisp he’ll snap out of the argument. Sure, Karkat is mostly to blame, but he’s continuing it. “Hey, Tholluxth?” She prods him in the back with her cane, getting a rather feminine noise out of the guy. “Where’s the bathroom at? I gotta change.” She shakes the other bag they brought with them, as though he’s the blind one. “Or, as much as I CAN, seeing as I still need that bra to get bugged.”

“Fuck, it’th not Tholluxth. It’th Tholluxth.” He takes a second to register what he just said, then smacks himself in the forehead in a classic face palm. “Wow, fuck me, I’m dumb. Bathroom’th the thecond door to the right.” She bounces back off, and Sollux gestures for the bagged bra. Karkat, smirking a bit because he’s taken the win for the pointless argument they were just having, hands it over. “I gueth I can work with thith, thinthe it thoundth like thit that may actually be important. You’re lucky I kept the pietheth you gave me from that bug you wanted analyzed becauthe I don’t keep that thit around for no reathon and I have no reathon to be bugging thit in the firtht plathe.”

Without saying another thing - because he knows any little thing would easily set Karkat off again - he heads into his apartment and dumps the bra onto a very messy desk. It’s utter chaos, but he knows everything that’s on it and that’s all that matters. He moves his glasses to be sitting on the top of his head, since his cool 3D specs would really just get in the way while trying to do this. After all, putting a tiny little bug into a piece of woman’s lingerie isn’t easy without any hindrances. Especially since he has to put the bug back together.

He isn’t going to question the necessity of a bug somewhere like this. Didn’t Terezi say she was a PI or someshit? If the police are incapable enough to need outside help, it’s bound to be something big that needs to be discreet.

Karkat had taken to following Terezi, trailing behind her like a lost little puppy. He knows better than to hover around Sollux when he’s trying to work. The guy is pretty laid back, just not when he’s actually working. He’s absolutely vicious if he gets bothered while concentrating.

“Are you really this pathetic, Karkles? Trying to follow me into the bathroom? We haven’t even been on a proper date yet and you’re already trying to get me out of my clothes! Shame on you.” Terezi grins wide, clearly just trying to mess with him. For a moment, she wonders if Sollux will give Karkat shit for this and start their bickering again, but then she just shrugs it off. It’s not like she can take back what she said, and Karkat’s deliciously cherry cheeks make it all worth it.

The man with the ‘deliciously cherry cheeks’ isn’t amused in the slightest. “No- I didn’t- You bitch, you’re- What do you mean ‘without a proper date’?! What happened to the chicken nuggets?!” Wasn’t that supposed to be their first date?

“Chicken nuggeth? Really, KK? That’th pathetic.”

“Stay out of this, Captor,” Karkat snaps, his face only going a deeper red. Why does he even put up with these assholes? Oh right, he doesn’t know. Terezi’s psychotic but there’s just something about her that he’s attracted to. Sollux has been his best friend since before he could remember. Their fathers were close, so of course they ended up being close.

Sollux did as requested, but there was a smirk as he continued to work. He’ll bother Karkat about that later, just to get a rise out of him.

Terezi smirks, waiting for her turn to bother Karkat some more. “So you think that because you got me some chicken nuggets you get to help me change? Or is it because of what happened last night?” She winks, not caring if he can see it or not, then leans on the bathroom door. If he starts to rant, she can just slip into the bathroom and cackle. It’s the perfect escape plan.

So why not try to put him in as awkward a position as possible?

“Wow, KK, I never knew you were that kinda guy.”

“I am NOT ‘that kinda guy’! Whatever that may be in your Mountain Dew soaked mind!” Karkat was getting ready to throw on all-out temper tantrum - a ‘Vantrum’ as some know it by. “And NOTHING happened last night okay! It’s not my fault you were warm and- We were in the same bed Goddammit, Pyrope, what the hell were you expecting to happen?!”

“Maybe the didn’t expect you to be that kinda guy, huh?” Sollux hasn’t looked up from his work even once, but he just couldn’t stay quiet. The quips in his head were begging to be said, and Karkat’s anger just urged them out even more. The snarky remarks had minds of their own. That’s what he’s going to say, at least.

Terezi has devolved into giggles at this point. “You’ll have to tell me all about what else he’s done to ladies like me to make him that kinda guy later, I’m gonna go ahead and get changed now.” She gives Karkat’s cheek a quick peck before slipping into the bathroom and shutting the door. “And tell me once that bra’s done! I need it for the outfit!”

“Yeah, got it. The bug’ll be done in a few, I just had to piethe it all back together.” It had been relatively simple, really, which was a bit of a disappointment. Sollux had wanted something a bit more challenging, but at least this way Karkat can’t hover over him grumbling and cursing and getting impatient.

And now he can cross ‘bug a girl’s bra’ off his bucket list. It’s a sad list, but he’s a sad man and he’s accepted it - unlike a certain hot-head he knows.

As Sollux was finishing the bugging of the bra, Karkat decided to try catching him up on the situation. That quickly devolved though, turning into gossip about Karkat’s love life - specifically, how he managed to woo Terezi into it.

Said girlfriend interrupts their gossip by peeking out of the bathroom door, a little miffed about how long it’s taking for the bra to get to her. It’s been a few minutes, and frankly she’s getting tired of waiting. “Hey! Bra! Toss it over here or I’ll go get it myself!” Realizing that knowing Karkat, he’s going to tell her to come get it. Sollux probably isn’t going to bring it over, either, so she adds, “I’m not fully dressed yet.”

Karkat’s moving quickly, snagging the bra - that has admittedly been done for over half of their conversation - and going to deliver it to Terezi. “Here. Got it. See how helpful I am? Fuck yeah.” He’s clearly proud of himself, and Terezi snickers before tugging him a bit closer so she can kiss his cheek.

“The bug’th on the thide, away from the pad but not on your back. It thouldn’t be vithible. Now get changed and get out tho I can go back to thleep. And don’t get yourthelveth killed. I don’t want that kinda shit in my conthienthe.”

“Thank you boys!” She grins at them, kisses Karkat’s cheek again, then ducks back into the bathroom to finish changing. Sollux just smirks at Karkat, who’s busy trying to pretend like he isn’t blushing. Terezi bounces out of the bathroom with a grin, not a hunt of a bug showing. “Ready to go, Karkles? I’ve got to get there soon! Something tells me this is going to take a while. And I’d much rather do this on my own terms rather than letting him come to us.”

She bounces out of the apartment, waving a thanks to Sollux and leading the way out to Karkat’s car. He follows her out with a grumble, muttering a simple ‘see you around, asshole’ to Sollux before going after the way too energetic detective.

“Ready to do this, Karkat?” Terezi turns to grin at him when he takes the driver’s seat. She’s terrified shitless but refusing to let that show.

“Fuck no. But that’s not going to change shit at this point. Let’s just get this nightmare over with.”

They’re at her apartment soon, and Karkat about broke his steering wheel several times because he was getting too tense. He’s anxious as fuck, and none of the anxiety is about himself. He isn’t the one that’s dealing with this psycho one-on-one. It’s Terezi. He doesn’t want something to happen to her. Hell, he CAN’T have something happen to her. He doesn’t know what he would do if she was to get hurt.

“Are we gonna have a code again? So I know when to swoop in and save the fucking day like a knight in shining armor?” He just wants to be as prepared as possible.

Terezi understands where he’s coming from, but she shakes her head. “No. I’ll trust my knight to know when to save the day. I don’t want to do anything even slightly suspicious.” She kisses his cheek - just a little peck - then slides out of his car and heads up to her apartment. She’s nervous as hell. The car ride didn’t do a damn thing to help, probably because Karkat was very clearly worked up the whole damn time.

But she can’t blame him. She’s terrified.

Having to watch her walk away killed Karkat. He wishes he could’ve been the one to have to do this, but he knows she’s the best candidate for this. And it’s her own apartment, too. It just all makes more sense. Doesn’t change the fact that he’s terrified for her, though.

Terezi takes a deep breath before unlocking her apartment and letting herself in, immediately able to tell things were different. The smell of her apartment is wrong. Things have been moved. A quick inspection of her apartment tells her that the killer has most definitely been inside her apartment and moved things around. She may have made her bed at some point and not remember, but her office is never that clean. This guy is definitely OCD of some sort. That or he just wanted to unsettle her by making it clear that he’s been here.

Probably both.

Karkat’s hand was on his gun as he sat impatiently in his car, fidgeting. He has to be prepared. If something happens to her, he has to be fast. One second is all it could take for something serious to happen to her, and it’ll take more than one second for him to get out of his car and up to her apartment. But this is the closest he could be without having to explain to her neighbors why he needed to be in their apartment - and even then the killer could know about this.

He grits his teeth, trying to figure out why he’s so Goddamned worried about her. She can take care of herself, otherwise she wouldn’t still be in this kind of business. Maybe it’s a boyfriend thing. Liking her has made him more protective of her. Or something.

As Terezi was fixing her apartment to make it more like her, she was twitchy. Every noise made her head turn, her nose twitch. She has to be on guard, sure, but this is just outright paranoid now. Get it together, Pyrope! She shakes her head, trying to calm herself down, but hearing footsteps coming to her door - and her door opening - made that pretty damn hard.

She turns to it and recomposes herself, all sharp edges and teeth as she grins.

“Well, hello there.”


	15. Chapter 15

Terezi’s nostrils flare just a little as she holds her grin, taking him in the best she can. He’s plain. Very plain. No wonder he’s gone so unnoticed, there doesn’t seem to be anything interesting about him in the slightest.

“What? Not going to greet me back?” She lets out a biting cackle, all of her sharp edges out in a show of automatic defenses. Her teeth are out, her lips are stretched thin, her muscles are tensed. Her body is perfectly prepped for ‘fight or flight’. “How rude! I’m sure you already know my name, so the absolute least you could do is give me yours.”

The response she gets is a very humorless chuckle, and the first thought that invades her mind is if that’s the last thing his victims hear. The thought is quickly shunned. “Now why would I tell you that?” Despite his cold laugh and plain looks, he has a smooth voice. And, to go with the cliche, angelic.

She still likes Karkat’s harsh and grating voice more, though. It doesn’t sound as fake.

“Well, seeing as I know your plan is to kill me, it certainly couldn’t hurt. Come on, what’re my chances of winning a brawl with you?” If her grin could stretch any more, it would, but she just has to settle for stepping closer to him. Hopefully her demeanor unnerves him somehow. She needs every advantage she can get.

He merely chuckles again, not moving from his spot or saying anything.

Then, finally, something: “Before I give you any kind of information, I need to search you. Spread ‘em.”

With a cackle, she does just that, putting her feet a little more than shoulders’ length apart and holding her arms out. “Odd, I’m usually the one saying that.” She’s utterly terrified of having this guy touching her, but there’s nothing she can do except play off her fear and continue to try unnerving him in the hopes of making him spill or slip up or SOMETHING.

Karkat had been frozen the moment he heard the guy’s voice, but as soon as he registers what’s about to happen - and how utterly buttfuck awful this guy is at flirting (if what’s going on can even be considered flirting) - his face contorts into a mixture of worry and anger. He was gripping his gun tight enough to make his knuckles turn white.

He’s ready to burst out of his car if this asshole touches Terezi for any longer than necessary. Hell, he’s ready to go in and shoot him up now just for touching her in the first place. But he can’t. He’s a cop. He’s the chief of police, for fuck’s sake, and he knows that.

That doesn’t keep him from fantasizing about it, though.

The fact that he can hear the clicking of her teeth as she snaps at him doesn’t help.

His hands had gotten curious while he patted her to make sure she wasn’t wearing any bugs or carrying any weapons, and every time she would snap her teeth at him.

“You said search, not ‘feel up’.”

“You were doing the same to me with your eyes,” he chuckles, completely missing the fact that eyeing up and physically touching are completely different.

And missing the fact that she’s very much blind. For a moment, Terezi laughs to herself about the irony. Then she responds. “Like you weren’t doing the same.”

As his hand pulls away, he pats her lower back - which gets his hand swatted at - then he starts to pace around her. It’s unnerving, like a shark circling prey. He probably sees himself exactly as that. “Before I tell you my name, Terezi, I would like to ask you a few things.” Clearly he’s going to be calling her by her first name. If him circling her wasn’t bad enough, now he’s acting all casual with her.

She had tried so hard to make him uncomfortable, but he’s managing to do just that to her and she doesn’t think she’s affected him at all. To make things worse, she constantly has to turn to keep facing him. She doesn’t like how his voice keeps moving around her. It messes with her head.

“Ask away.”

“Why the cane and the sunglasses?” The question was quick. He had already thought of it and couldn’t figure out why.

Good. Something manages to stump this asshole. “Talk about a really odd question!” She perks up easily, trying to buy herself some time to debate whether it would be better for him to know she’s blind or if it would be to her advantage to keep that to herself. As it is, he’s treating her like she can see. He never found out she’s blind.

It’s been working for her so far, so she’ll keep to that. “Why’re you curious about my accessories? I just like them! The glasses are cool, wouldn’t you agree?” She flips her cane up to tap it against her lenses gently, careful to not knock them off. If her lenses came off, it would be obvious that she’s blind. Nobody has milky eyes and ISN’T blind. That isn’t how it works. “It doesn’t take all that long to get used to the red tint. It’s just like a weird kind of color blindness. And the cane, well-“ She pauses, passing it from hand to hand as though playing with it. She’s really just trying to buy herself more time. “You see, I’m a very tiny girl, so skinny, too. I’m very easily snappable and get pushed around quite a bit in crowds, so I needed something to prevent that! Well, that’s how it started out for me. Now I just keep it with me because it feels weird for me not to!” Not the most convincing thing ever, but hopefully he buys it.

“Yes, yes, you are quite an odd woman. With a very odd taste, too. Not many would think teal and red would make a good combination or that living with unnecessary colorblindness would be preferred.” He sounds doubtful of her answer, but he doesn’t press. Good.

Terezi merely laughs at him, leaning on her cane and opting to just follow his movements with her head now. Constantly twirling in one spot had started to make her dizzy. “Do I really seem like the average person to you?”

“No, you don’t.”

“Exactly. Now!” She twirls to be facing where he is, her head slowly following his. “I’ve answered you. It’s your turn to answer me! Your name, kind sir, what is it?”

Karkat has to keep from getting anymore eager to get this over with. His name. That’s the first step. Getting this asshole’s name, writing it down, then they-

“Easy: John Smith.”

“FUCK YOU!” Karkat nearly screams, banging his head against the steering wheel and not feeling the pain. He’s too angry to feel the pain. “Are you fucking SERIOUS?!” He has to take deep breaths to calm himself down to tune back into what’s going on in Terezi’s apartment. Now is not the time to get pissy and go shoot this asshole over a name.

“Really? Is it seriously John Smith?” Terezi was just as disbelieving, her annoyance very thinly masked. He has no reason to lie, since he believes her to be alone and believes he’s going to be leaving her apartment with her dead body lying on the ground.

The man seems proud, and she can hear a smirk in his words. “Yes. It is. My parents must have found it ironic. Or the orphanage I was raised in just didn’t bother giving me a proper name.”

Orphanage? She hadn’t been expecting anything like that, but it could make some sense. He’s average, plain in pretty much every physical way, he would likely be lost in a system like foster care. “Orphanage?” She repeats her question out loud, wanting to know more about that.

“Uh-uh, it’s my turn for a question. That Sheriff working with you on my case. Where is he?”

Terezi immediately scowls, remembering the act they’re doing. “Ugh, why do you have to bring him up?” She has to pretend like they’re in a fight. She cannot mess this up, cannot let it slip that they’re still on good terms. He would get suspicious. She can’t have him suspicious or anything.

“Oh? Did the two of you have a lovers’ quarrel?” There’s a hint of amusement in his tone; he’s finding immense pleasure in this.

“We are NOT lovers,” she growls at him. Hopefully Karkat keeps in mind that she has to act like this. Hopefully he doesn’t believe what she’s saying. It’s just an act. Just a ploy to bend this situation to seem as realistic as possible.

Karkat has to keep reminding himself, too, mumbling to himself about how they’re still happy with each other and how she’s just having to act like this. She is a VERY good actress.

“Oh really? I heard you two had slept together.” There was something more than amusement in his voice that time, and it made something in her snap just a little bit. But she isn’t Karkat. She knows how to keep herself from exploding or snapping externally.

Instead, she laughs. It isn’t a high cackle like her typical, amused laughter. It’s darker, more bitter, and it’s a struggle to keep it sounding like that. “We slept in the same bed, yeah, but we had a little more than a ‘small’ argument this morning. We split off at your latest kill site, and I haven’t heard from him since. Good riddance, too, since this had been MY case from the start.”

Karkat bites his lip, his mumblings coming to a stop as he starts to mentally berate himself for worrying. She’s acting, dumbass! She’s doing a damn good job of it, too! Enough to make him worry that maybe what she’s saying isn’t totally false. But he’s outside her apartment. He’s in a car, waiting to burst into her apartment to save her if something goes wrong. She wants him here, she wants him in this exact spot. There’s no way she can really be thinking ‘good riddance’ when this whole convoluted scheme was her own idea.

The killer snorts, and Terezi can imagine a smirk on his lips. “Well, that’s nice to hear. A lovely lady like yourself shouldn’t have to be dragged down by the likes of him.” He moves to pat her head, and she quickly blocks him with her cane, her eyes narrowing. “Oh, excuse me. Do you not like to be touched?”

“Not by the likes of someone such as yourself,” she responds sweetly, a cold grin sharply contrasting the sugar that just oozed out of her mouth. She doesn’t remove her cane from his arm until he’s dropped it back to his side. Good. “Good. Now, you’ve been doing a real good job of not saying anything about any of this. Why so secretive? I know you’re here to kill me. I don’t mind too much, I knew I would meet my end because of a case gone wrong. I really do think it was the cops’ fault, though. They messed up my first scene, and then there was the one from earlier today.”

She doesn’t blame them anymore, though. She had gotten too emotional. She now knows that she was in the wrong. But she can’t have Mr. John Smith here knowing that. No, he has to keep believing she holds bitterness towards Karkat and the rest of the police force.

“Smart girl,” he hums, “The cops certainly were in your way. Someone as smart as you doesn’t need a partner. I wouldn’t have minded all that much if I was caught by you.”

“Quit complimenting me. It’s embarrassing. And completely off track.” And kind of disgusting to have to listen to. But she has to stroke his ego some. It may get him to confess, and that’s something they’re still missing. “But since we’re exchanging compliments anyways, I must admit something. I wasn’t all that intrigued when I was first given your case, but when I found out you were serial killing? I got a lot more interested. First serial killer and all. I’m rather impressed, considering you won. Disgusted, since you’re wasting such obvious intelligence on something like this, but still impressed. For my sake, confess? I’d hate to die having not heard it.”

Karkat perks up when she mentions confessions. Yes. Good. This is what they need. The moment he confesses, Terezi can turn the tables on him and kick his ass. Or he can go busting into there and shoot the asshole. In the foot or something. Maybe the leg or the arm.

The killer goes to touch under Terezi’s chin, and this time she doesn’t stop him. But she definitely tenses up. Either he doesn’t notice and brushes it off. “Yes, I killed them.” There’s a grin in his voice, one she’s very glad she can’t see. “The first girl was my long-term girlfriend. She made me angry, so I killed her. The second girl was my other, shorter-term girlfriend. She made me angry, so I killed her. The third one was a little bitch that threatened to turn me in because she knew too much. Of course I had to kill her. The last three were ones that knew them. You and your ex-partner angered me, so I killed them in retaliation. Happy now, Terezi?”

Terezi merely grins. “Of course, John.” She doesn’t move away from his hand, but she’s slowly moving her cane so she’s ready for when he makes his next move. Now that he’s confessed, he’s going to try to kill her.

“Good. That means you can die with a smile still on your face. It’s such a shame that I have to kill you, too, since you have such a pretty face. You’re so angular and symmetrical.”

“Hehehe, well there’s an easy solution to that: don’t kill me. Why not let me live?”

“Because, dear Terezi, you’re part of the law. And I’m, well, not. There will be no sweet forbidden romance here.”

A snappy comment from her is suppressed when she hears the metal of a knife being unsheathed, and she acts fast. She turns herself and kicks out her leg, aiming for his stomach. Based on the puff of air she hears, she got him right where she wanted him.

Now it’s time for a short quip: “Sorry, Smith, I’m not really one for the cliched, sappy shit anyways.” She grins wide, then moves to slam her cane into his ribs.

He catches the cane and tugs.

She stumbles forward, tugged along with her cane.

“Heh, really? What a shame. You seem like the kind of girl I’d actually go for. If, you know, I didn’t prefer killing.” She hears the sinister grin again, then feels his hand on her throat. His grip is immediately tight, going right for choking her. “Sorry, love, but I can’t have anyone knowing about me when I make my escape.”

He squeezes more, and she drops her cane, going to try prying at his fingers.

Karkat had been tense the whole time, but when he heard Terezi’s cane hit the ground he was immediately out of his car. He moved fast enough to stumble over his legs, cursing at himself and mentally kicking his ass into gear. He can’t let her die. Hell no. He’s her fucking knight, and knights don’t just let their girl DIE. That isn’t what knights do.

As Karkat was stumbling up the stairs, Terezi was trying to tear apart John Smith’s hand. She must have cut him or something because he lets her go, and she stumbles back, glaring at him and rubbing her neck.

“Chocking fetish?”

“And a stabbing one,” he retorts, and she recomposes herself just in time to hear him lunge at her. She dodges and swings her leg to the side, aiming to kick him anywhere. Anywhere at all. Hopefully somewhere he isn’t protecting.

She gets met with the sharp sting of a blade cutting through her pants and into her skin. It doesn’t feel severe or anything, but it’s certainly bad enough to keep her from trying that stunt again. She stumbles back more, a limp very evident, and hopes that Karkat is close. She has no idea what he’s doing. This bug only sends him audio, so she has no idea what’s happening on his end.

She’s completely helpless right now with a very pissed serial killer aiming a knife at her.

Fortunately for her, Karkat chose that moment to kick open the door. Literally kick it open. He could have opened it, but no, he wanted to kick it. Why? Dramatic effect. And to draw attention to him and away from Terezi.

But mostly for dramatic effect.

He takes a brief moment to take inventory: the apartment is unharmed, there’s a blind cane a few feet from the door, there’s a serial killer asshole with a knife that has blood on it, and there’s a Terezi with a bleeding leg looking completely unarmed. Well fuck, shit had escalated quickly.

Karkat quickly brings his gun up, aiming it at the killer. Is his hand shaking? Hopefully not. “DROP. THE FUCKING. KNIFE. I WILL NOT HESITATE TO SHOOT THE LIVING GODDAMN FUCK OUT OF YOU RIGHT NOW. POLICE, ASSHOLE.” Indoor voice? Clearly, Chief of Police Karkat Vantas has never heard of any such thing.

“Terezi dear, I thought you said you two split up?” He looks from Karkat to her, then casually flicks his knife to the wood above Karkat’s head before holding his hand’s in the air.

Terezi huffs and limps over to Karkat, slipping the handcuffs from his belt before pecking his cheek, careful to not get between the gun and John. “Karkles and I? Not a chance. He’s my special man,” she hums, able to hear his breathing even out as he relaxes. He had been so tense.

The knife getting stuck right above his head did not do good things for his nerves, and he had nearly screamed when he saw the flicker of it coming at him.

“You got the confession, right?” Terezi was cuffing John’s hands, making them nice and secure and tight. “Because I seriously want to take this Goddamn bra off. Seriously, Karkat, there’s this one really uncomfortable spot, and it’s right where the freaking bug is.”

“I can help you take it off,” John quips, a cocky smirk in his voice. The tight cuffs and gun pointed directly at him did absolutely nothing to contain his arrogance.

Terezi makes a face of utter disgust. “Can you shoot him? Like, in the foot or something?”

“Unfortunately, no, I cannot shoot this asshole,” he huffs, gun slowly being lowered as he’s certain this asshole won’t try anything. “But it’s recorded.” He glances over at her, then immediately feels like puking. Holy fuck, her leg has bled a lot more than when he last looked at it. He cannot deal with that, and the way his face gets pastier is a good sign of his issue with blood. “Uh- Pyrope- Your leg’s kind of… Intimidating Niagara falls.”

The pain of her injury didn’t hit her until Karkat pointed it out, and suddenly she was cursing under her breath, mumbling her pain. “Fucking… Yeah, I’ll take care of it. You get this asshole to the car. I’ll be down once I’ve gotten this dealt with.” She limps to her cane, scoops it up, then uses it to help her get to her bathroom - and her first aid supplies. As much as Terezi hates having to deal with injuries, she doesn’t want to worry Karkat more than she already has. So she’ll suck it up and actually take care of her injury instead of letting it do its own thing as usual.

As much as he wants to help with her injury, he knows he’s going to be useless. So he goes to the killer instead, grumbling as he gets prepped to read this asshole his rights. “You were NOT fucking worth all of this.”

John merely gives the sheriff a grin, still not backing down. “Whatever you say, Sheriff. Just keep in mind that I got to feel up your girl before you did.”

There was no warning between the snarky comment and the mental snap in Karkat’s head, and there was no warning between that snap and the sound of Karkat’s fist connecting squarely with this asshole’s face. “NO. FUCK YOU.”


	16. Chapter 16

Terezi’s ears easily picked up on the sound of skin-on-skin contact, and she limped back to the scene as quickly as she could, her leg only just barely taken care of. One of her hands was still working on making sure the wrapping was going to hold properly. “What happened?”

John was groaning in pain, but Karkat didn’t feel guilty in the slightest. The asshole’s nose didn’t even start to bleed.

“He didn’t take too kindly to knowing another guy had his mitts on you.” The only reason he wasn’t spitting in anger at the punch was because of the pure rage he could see on Karkat’s face. Karkat knew it, too, and it only pissed him off more.

The only reason he eased up at all was because of Terezi coming over. He was looking her over, making sure he hadn’t done anything to her and making sure her leg was doing fine, but he gets greeted with a tongue on his cheek and a giggle. “You have quite the temper, Karkles,” she hums, grinning up at him.

He makes a face at the lick, still not used to such a weird form of affection, then wipes off the saliva. He doesn’t get a chance to respond though, his thoughts on how exactly to respond getting interrupted by the jackass he had just punched.

“Karkles?” There’s amusement in his tone, and Karkat had to try real fucking hard to not deck him even harder than before to make sure he really DID bleed this time. Maybe break his fucking nose.

There’s no way this guy is done with them.

That thought hadn’t hit him until just now, but now that he’s thinking about it… This guy got caught pretty easily in the end, didn’t he? No gun or anything on him - he would’ve used that instead of a knife. He isn’t a simple killer, either, even though he looks like a simple guy.

Or maybe he’s just overthinking this.

He has a habit of doing that.

“It’s not Karkles, you asswipe. She calls me that because she CAN. You can-fucking-not, got it? To you, I’m- I’m- Fuck you, I’m Officer Vantas. Got it?”

“Jeesh, Karkles, calm down. You’re just giving him the satisfaction of pissing you off, dummy. What, did you believe me when I said it was the cops’ fault? When I said I didn’t want or need you? You’re a lot angrier than usual.” Terezi’s practically clinging to him, resting her chin on his shoulder. Even though her tone is playful, she’s honestly worried. Did her words actually affect him?

Karkat’s response is to turn and kiss her. It felt weird, considering there’s a serial killer literally right there, but at the same time he felt like there was no better way to convey his feelings. “You’re a really, really good actress. Alright?”

Terezi giggles against his lips, kissing him softly. “Of course. I have to be, dummy, otherwise I wouldn’t be able to do my job properly.” She then nuzzles into his neck, breathing him in and reminding herself that they’re fine and okay and even though her leg hurts, they’re fine and have caught the killer.

“Are you two just going to neck each other now, or…?”

“And give you the pleasure of watching?” She peeks out from around Karkat, glaring over at John. “Not a chance.”

“Can we PLEASE do something about this asshole now? Take him to the station? Call the rest of the police? Just plain get rid of him?” Karkat’s eyes were locked onto the guy, his eyes narrowed and a definite aggravation in his tone. He just wants this guy out of their lives and behind bars.

What he really wants is to feel properly safe again and be able to cuddle up with Terezi and hold her and know that everything is fine now.

Terezi snickers and pulls away from her nice smelling heater, moving to be behind John and taking hold of the cuffs. “Alright, fine, it’s time we took this guy in. Come on, to the car. Karkat, grab my cane. I actually do kinda need it, as surprising as that may be.” She pushes the guy towards the door, leading the way out.

Once they’re outside, she can smell the crisp night air. It got late at some point.

“I’m surprised you need a cane, Terezi. You seem quite capable of fighting without it.”

“It’s not for fighting. Now hush up, you have the right to remain silent.” She pushes him towards the police car, not wanting to deal with him anymore. It’s late; she just wants food and cuddles and to sleep.

He complies, chuckling a bit. “I don’t have to be though, correct?” After silence from her, he continues. “So, the cane? Why?”

“I don’t have to answer that,” she huffs, opening the cruiser’s door and pushing him into it. She’s a bit rougher than necessary, but he complies anyways. “Now behave.”

She shuts the door, then trails her fingers along the side of the car to get to the passenger seat, slipping inside. Karkat’s there soon enough, passing her cane to her.

He glances down at her leg, then back at her face, frowning. “What about your leg? Fuck, are you gonna be alright for the drive? You can stay here, I can-“

“I’m fine, Karkat,” she interrupts, leaning over to kiss his cheek. “If I can take having my eyes burned out of my skull, I can take a little cut to the leg.” When she hears a rather confused noise come from the backseat, she turns to grin at John. “Yeah, congrats. You assaulted a blind girl.”

Then she turns back to the front, clicks on her seatbelt, and yells, “To the station!”

Karkat didn’t like the thought of having this asshole in his car, even though it’s perfectly safe, but he grimaces and bears it. Then he glances to Terezi’s leg again and sighs. “You’re going to the hospital after this. We’re getting your leg checked out.” He felt so guilty about it. If he had just be fast enough, if he had just not been stupid enough to let this go on so long…

“I can feel you looking, Karkles. Come on, eyes on the road.” She grins wide at him, absently massaging the wounded area. Should she go to the hospital? It stings, sure, but she’s taken care of it. Cleaned it and put medicine on it and wrapped it up pretty nicely. She’ll go if it gets worse in the next few days, but otherwise it’ll be fine.

She isn’t going to say that, though. He’ll fight her on it, and they don’t need that while the killer is in the backseat.

“Just- Get ready for hell,” he sighs, looking back to the road as he pulls into the police station’s parking lot. “All hell is going to break lose when we get him in there. Act like you’re dying. Like there was some poison on that knife or someshit. Anything to get us out of having to answer all the questions I know we’re gonna be asked.”

Terezi snorts and shakes her head. “Hell no. I don’t want any theatrics about me. Besides, if the question isn’t relevant to the case, then they don’t need to know. If it’s relevant to the case, then they can read it in the report.” She hops out of the car and opens the back door, tugging John out by the cuffs.

Karkat trails after her as she leads the guy inside, his hands tucked in his pockets and shoulders already hunched in preparation for the bombardment of questions. Just as expected, there’s a multitude of questions.

“What happened?”

“Who’s that?”

“Is that the killer?”

“Did he confess?”

Each question gets ignored by the private investigator as she marches him through the station to get to the cell to put him in. “Come on, Sheriff, let’s get this guy dealt with so I can get my leg checked out.” She isn’t limping anymore because she refuses to, but the sting has become something like a burn.

Plus, she hadn’t expected to be this annoyed by all the attention.

Karkat snagged one of the new guys, quickly explaining the situation and promising a recording of the killer’s confession. They have to download the audio onto a USB and bring it back for proper evidence. But that’s after this guy has been booked and sat in a cell and Terezi’s leg is properly taken care of.

Once John’s been taken care of, he grabs her hand and pulls her back out of the station, snapping at anyone that tried to stop them. “Hold on, don’t you fucking die on me.”

“Karkat, I’m not dying,” she snickers, stopping him just so she can kiss him. “My leg just hurts a little more than it did before. Okay? Don’t get too worked up over it. I’m only going to the ER because a professional should probably check it out. And because you’re getting all worried.” She kisses him again before sliding back into the car, going back to lightly massaging the area around the injury. It was the only way she could make the itching and burning bearable.

Karkat was left outside for a few seconds, mumbling incoherent things about just wanting her to be okay. A kiss is always a sure way to make him lose his train of thought. He’s back in the swing of being protective asshole in a few more seconds, driving her to the hospital at a ‘this is still sorta legal but not really’ speed. Terezi just let him, figuring there’s no point in trying to calm him down. The only thing that will get him to relax is getting her leg checked out.

Even at the emergency room, Karkat’s snappish and over-protective, refusing to leave her side for any amount of time. Terezi deals with it by holding onto his hand and giving it little squeezes when he starts to get too out of line. All in all, it goes pretty smoothly despite Karkat getting snippy at the smallest thing.

“Are you going to relax now?” Terezi asks the question as she leads the way back to the car, her leg properly taken care of now and hand still grasping Karkat’s. “You heard what the doctor said. It’s just a flesh wound. No lasting damage so long as it doesn’t get infected. Alright?” She squeezes his hand, just to make sure he’s paying attention to her and not getting caught up in any thoughts. “Let’s do our dinner date tonight.”

“Wait, what?” He hadn’t shown much when she was talking about her leg, silently listening to her, but when she mentioned the date it got a pretty good reaction out of him. “Do you seriously want to go through with a date tonight with everything that just happened?” He stares at her, trying to wrap his head around that. She nearly died, but she still wants to go on a date?

He had been so sure that she only agreed to them being a ‘thing’ because she thought she was going to die.

Maybe it’s the adrenaline from everything that happened.

“I mean, we could. I can get us a fancy restaurant. I mean a table. At a fancy restaurant. I can’t- Fuck it, you know what I mean.”

Terezi snickers and squeezes his hand again. “Of course I want to go through with it! Why else would I have said that? I want us to have our date, and I don’t know about you but I’m very ready to go.”

Karkat glances to his own outfit, frowning. “Yeah, well, I’m not. I don’t think any fancy place would let me in dressed like this.”

“Then let’s go to your apartment! You can change into something that’s maybe date-worthy, then we can go off to get dinner.” She giggles, not too sure if he has any clothing that would be considered ‘date-worthy’. She doesn’t care, but he probably will.

Tonight is going to be nice. The evening was stressful, but the killer was caught. Now she gets to have dinner with her Karkat and bask in the afterglow of a solved case.

He runs his hand through his hair, trying to think. “I… May have something? Maybe? I’ll make it work.” Hopefully. He isn’t good at dressing himself up; Kanaya typically does that for him.

“Well if you can’t find anything, then we can have a simple dinner. Go to a diner, maybe go back to your place for a movie. We don’t need anything fancy.”

“Or we can not go back to my place,” he starts, letting go of her hand to instead hug her waist and pull her close, “Maybe I’m looking forward to finally having a night on my own. Not having to worry about a nosy PI sniffing at my bathroom door while I try to shower.” He rests his head on hers, deciding to be a little affectionate. Fuck the fact that they’re in front of a hospital. He wants to show her some affection.

Terezi giggles and kisses him. “You say that, yet here we are, tangled together in a warm embrace. If you want your apartment to yourself tonight, that’s fine. I have to take care of the knife in my doorframe and the blood. You know, the typical kind of stuff.”

“You know what? Fine. We’ll go to a diner. Have a dinner. Something quick. Something easy that’s still a better date than chicken nuggets. Then when I’ve got us a fancy reservation at a fancy restaurant and have a fancy outfit, we’ll go on a real dinner date. I’ll romance the shit out of you when that happens, just wait for it.”

“Believe me, I will.”


	17. Chapter 17

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let's begin the ending of Danger Close. There's today, tomorrow, then the next day and it'll be done.

“Thanks for dropping me off, Karkles. And for the date.” Terezi grins at him as he pulls up outside her apartment complex, feeling more relaxed than she has in a while. The killer is taken care of, she had a successful date with Karkat (even though some of the time was spent with her having to reassure him that everything really is fine), and there’s the promise of a new relationship that she’s very, very happy with. “You have to be here tomorrow, though. Report writing and all. Don’t forget to download the audio from the bug for the confession, too. We need that. G’night,” she hums, leaning over to kiss him.

He kisses her back, his hand hesitantly going to the back of her head so he can kiss her for a little longer. As cute as her short pecks are, he wanted something a little more. But he lets her go after a few seconds, nodding. “I’ll be here. You can call me up and yell at my ass if I’m not.”

“Then I will totally do that,” she promises, grinning at him before hopping out of the car. She gives a wave, then heads to her apartment. If she stayed for too long, she would end up whining at him until he promised to stay the night with her. Even though she had spent the date occasionally convincing him that everything is fine now, part of her had never believed that. Part of her is still worried.

The moment she opened the door to her apartment, she knew her fear was well-founded. She could smell John Smith, leaning against her wall with a knife in his hand.

“Welcome home, sweetie. You sure took your time.”

Karkat drove back to his apartment, a knot in his stomach. Something didn’t feel right. It wasn’t the date or the food, though - that was all fine. She seemed to enjoy herself, so that means it was a good date, right? Hopefully.

Something else was wrong. This whole thing really was dealt with too easily. Can it really be over?

Once he’s back in his apartment, he falls onto his couch, sighing. His mind immediately goes to how the last time he was on his couch there was a cute little blind girl perched in his lap. He wants to dwell on that thought, see where it takes him, but he’s sure it wouldn’t be anywhere good.

Sleep first. He’ll get to see her in the morning.

“If you missed me this much, you could’ve just used your one call to talk to me. The police station has my phone number.” Terezi keeps a grin on her face, refusing to show any fear even though her blood just ran cold. He got out. Somehow, someway, he escaped custody and got back into her apartment.

“But I wanted to actually see you.” She can hear the smirk in his voice, and she slowly steps inside, shutting the door. She doesn’t need a neighbor walking past and seeing this. No more innocents need to get involved.

Once the door’s shut, he moves forward, tapping the tip of a sharply metallic knife under her chin. “Now. I want you to call up your boyfriend.”

Terezi was absolutely frozen. The metal is cold, the smell stings her nose, and the fear has seized her.

She only moves when he taps the blade against her chin again, impatient.

“Okay, okay. I’ll call him.” Motions rather jerky, she takes out her phone and calls Karkat.

Karkat has yet to move from his couch yet, and the ringing of his cellphone isn’t going to suddenly make him move. Chances are, it isn’t anything important. Probably just Sollux or something. He’ll let it go to voicemail and check it later, once he actually cares to.

Terezi mutters a curse as she gets sent to voicemail, but the press of the knife against her skin makes her stiffen and start to talk when she hears the beep. “Hey, Karkat. Change of plans. Since it’ll take a while to write up our report, I need you over tonight. Sorry, but it looks like you’re still stuck with me and this case.” The knife doesn’t lessen on her skin, and she narrows her eyes at the man holding it. “It went to voicemail, John. There’s nothing I can-“

“Call again.”

“If he didn’t pick up the first time-“

“Call. Again.”

Her teeth grit and she tenses more as she feels the blade almost cut her skin. It backs off a little as she calls Karkat’s number again, but the threat of it is still very much there.

“Fucking fuck, alright! I get it!” Karkat nearly falls off his couch reaching for his phone, snagging it from the table and answering it without checking to see who’s calling. “This better be fucking important.”

“Get your ass-“ Terezi’s cut off by the blade tapping against her neck, the flat side touching her skin just like it had been holding her chin. “I need you over. The write up will take longer than I thought, so we should get started on it now.”

Karkat growls into the phone. “I just got home, Terezi. Can this seriously not wait?” When his initial annoyance is over with, he realizes something: she cut herself off. She never cuts herself off. Something is going on. “Okay. I’ll be over in a few minutes.”

“Thanks, Karkat,” she mumbles, hanging up when she feels the blade tap against her neck again. Of course John isn’t pleased with the way she did the call. She wasn’t sounding like herself, but that wasn’t just because she was afraid.

He knows that, too. “No hidden codes to your boyfriend, Terezi. I’m not playing any games with you two this time,” he growls, practically stroking her neck with the flat side of his blade.

She grimaces and stiffens up more.

Karkat isn’t a complete idiot about the situation and grabs his police things. Something is very wrong. He’s going to need his gun. He’s definitely going to need his gun. He’d rather be exercising his 2nd Amendment right and use his license to carry his pistol than be caught defenseless. Especially if the nagging thought in the back of his mind is right and that asshole somehow escaped.

Just before he gets out of his car at her apartment, he sets the gun on the top of his items in his duffel bag - brought just in case nothing is wrong but he does have to spend the night to wrap up the case. God does he hope that’s the case.

He doubts it is; something sounded very wrong when he was on the phone with her. On his way up to her apartment, he realized why something sounded wrong.

Terezi called him Karkat. She wouldn’t call him Karkat on a phone call like that, not unless she’s thoroughly pissed at him. But there’s no way she’d be annoyed with him to the extent of calling him Karkat just because of paperwork.

Instead of waiting even the three seconds it would take to knock, he opens the door and steps inside. “Pyrope? You here?”

The sight that greets him isn’t a pleasant one, and his face immediately pales. Terezi’s in the killer’s grip, a knife flat against the underside of her chin.

“Hello, Karkles.” John taps the knife against her chin a few times, grinning right at him. “Miss me?”

Karkat was quick to shut the door, his hand moving to get the gun out of his bag. How the fuck did this asshole manage to escape? How did nobody CALL him about this? Fuck. Fuck, fuck, FUCK.

“Let her go. Now.” For once, his tone was even and serious, and his eyes narrow to glare at him. Of course he knows he’s in no position to make demands, but at least this way he can say he tried. As stupid as that sounds, if he ends up putting a bullet in this asshole to get Terezi back - which is very possible - the court would like to hear that.

He takes his sweet time in responding, but the knife had stopped moving. It didn’t make Terezi feel any safer. “Now why would I do that? I’m the one in power here, wouldn’t you say? So, do you really want me to let her go? Because I can assure you, if I do that she won’t live.”

Even though she was trying hard to not look afraid, those words make her stiffen. She can’t do anything in her position; she just has to hope that Karkat knows what he’s doing and does it right.

“What do you want?” His hand is on his gun, but it’s still out of sight. He won’t pull it out just yet. Not when there’s a knife still so close to Terezi’s jugular. It’d be faster to flick the vein open than it would be for him to pull his gun out, aim it and fire it at him. “Whatever it is, hurting Terezi isn’t gonna get you it. Because if you fucking kill her, I will shoot you dead here and now.”

Hearing his words helps her to relax, but only a little. There’s only so much she can do when there’s the sharp tang of metal in her nose.

“Don’t worry, I don’t plan on killing her. She’s much more important alive, after all. But if you do something without me telling you to or if you disobey me, I won’t hesitate to slit her throat. After all, I’d rather die knowing I’ve made you suffer than go to prison.” He lets those words sink in for a few seconds, his grin curling into a cruel smirk. “So, are you going to listen or are you going to take a chance?”

Karkat’s jaw clenches hard enough to cause his head to start hurting, and he has to take a deep breath to unlock it. “Fine, you win, alright you ass? I won’t try anything. Just tell me what you want.” His hand is still on his gun though, just in case he manages to get an opening. It doesn’t seem like that’ll be happening, but it can’t hurt to be prepared. Right? Hopefully.

“Out.” John’s response is immediate, and it takes him a second to realize he may not get what he means. “I want an escape, to get out of this whole predicament without getting arrested. I want a new identity, I want freedom. I don’t want you two following me. And like I said, I won’t hesitate to kill dear Terezi here if you disobey me.” As if he needs to prove his point even more, he presses the blade against her chin more, forcing her to tilt her head back.

It takes a lot of self-restraint for her to not whimper.

“Understand?”

“I can’t do that.” Karkat doesn’t have to think to know something like that. It’s common sense! “It isn’t like I can snap my fingers and suddenly you have a whole new life without the police chasing you down!”

“What was that? You don’t want your little girlfriend to live?” He presses the knife more, and this time a slight whimper slips out. She hadn’t meant for it to, but her neck is hurting and her head is swimming and at the moment all she really wants is to not feel the cold metal or smell it. “Such a shame, such a pity…”

“Wait! Stop! We’ve already turned the evidence in! They have your fingerprints! It would literally be impossible! I can’t make a fucking miracle happen, alright?” His voice has cracked, betraying just how afraid he is. He can’t let Terezi die. He can’t stand watching her be so terrified, either. He heard her squeak; the mighty private investigator Terezi Pyrope doesn’t squeak at just anything. “We’d have to fake your death, and that isn’t as fucking easy as the movies make it out to be, alright? They’d want your body to make sure. Just- Just let her go. I’ll do whatever else you want” His voice is cracking more, and he’s getting frustrated not only with this ignorant asshole and the situation in general but with himself. His voice can’t be cracking right now! He has to look and sound tough, not like some scared little schoolboy!

Even though it wasn’t compliance to what he wants, John chuckles and moves the knife down - but only enough for Terezi’s blind eyes to stare straight again. “I already knew you’d do what I want, but I won’t be letting her go until I’m done.”

“Just get to the fucking point already,” he spits out, his fear replaced by anger. It’s a step towards regaining his composure.

“How about… A place to stay? A safe place, until the search dies down.” As if by habit, the knife starts to stroke along her neck, the touch light enough to not cut but it is most definitely there.

It leaves Terezi too afraid to do just about anything, scared that even the slightest move would cause her neck to get cut.

“It shouldn’t be too long. A couple of days, maybe two weeks. You can do that, can’t you?”

Karkat was quickly getting tired of this asshole’s bullshit. Maybe if he shot fast enough, it would take the guy so off guard he wouldn’t have a chance to kill her? No, he can’t risk that. Every piece of him had a piece of Terezi too close for comfort. No way does he want to risk shooting her.

This is going to be hard.

“What about Terezi? You can’t expect to keep her with you that whole time. That’s just fucking ridiculous. There’ll be a whole other search for her - she’s important, you know.”

“Who said she’ll be with me? I was thinking just house arrest. Maybe she needs some time to herself to wind down and heal, recuperate after the difficult case that she failed so miserably.” Hearing him say that she had failed this case was a sting, but knowing that he’s right in what she was planning on doing after this case made it all hurt more.

Is she really that easy to pick apart?

“Good. Then give her back and we’ll have a deal.” The moment Terezi’s out of that asshole’s grip, he’ll shoot. He’s ready. All he needs is Terezi out of the way.

“On one condition.” The knife gets lowered, now resting by her stomach. He taps it there, and Terezi sucks in a breath as she instinctively tries to retract her stomach from the blade. She can’t feel the cold, thankfully, but she knows it’s there and that alone is enough.

Karkat is getting very tired of this stalling, his trigger finger starting to get twitchy. “Well what the fuck is it?! Quit stalling and fucking spit it out already!”

“You both stay within my sights while this gets planned. If either of you try anything, I won’t hesitate to hurt you.” He twirls his knife, reminding the other of his skill. Then he gives Terezi’s a shove towards Karkat, the knife now gone.

Terezi stumbles, surprised by the sudden push, then catches herself so she doesn’t fall. Her injured leg is protesting, on fire, and she ends up against the wall next to Karkat, leaning on it to relieve the pain from her leg.

The moment he has Terezi by his side, Karkat pulls the gun from the bag and pulls the trigger. Like a true marksman, he closes his eyes and completely disregards aiming. He has no idea whether he hit him or not - whether he’s even still alive - but there was no sucking back the bullet now. It’s out of his gun and on its path, whatever that path may be.

As surprised as she had been by the gunshot, Terezi reacted quickly. She cupped the hand holding his gun, working it out of his fingers. She doesn’t want to smell what happened, but judging by the lack of a response, she’s assuming the guy died. That isn’t going to be easy to explain in court, but it’s a justified death. Karkat wouldn’t face anything for his death.

So instead, she set on making sure Karkat didn’t have a meltdown. Her lips met his cheek several times, kissing softly and sweetly and not saying anything. What does someone say in this kind of situation, anyways?

Karkat doesn’t seem to know either, just breathing and letting her warmth and scent calm his tensed muscles. He doesn’t open his eyes yet, not wanting to see what would greet him. He can’t stand blood, and he knows there’s going to be lots of it. After all, he just shot somebody. Unless he missed and this guy just hasn’t responded yet, there’s going to be blood.

He opens them anyways, his stomach immediately churning at the sight. The guy isn’t dead, but he’s certainly not unharmed. He’s slumped against the wall, blood where he had been standing and streaks of it from where he slid down. There’s a definite shot on his right side, just below his shoulder, and based on the look on his face he’s in utter bewilderment.

Needing a distraction, he looks back at Terezi, catching her lips in a quick kiss. “You okay?” He whispers the question, wanting nothing more than to forget the man bleeding on the ground and embrace her.

That isn’t an option, though, and they both know it.

“I’m fine,” she whispers back, kissing him before taking a step away and setting the gun on the ground. “I’m more worried about you at this point. Just- Breathe, okay? And call the station.” Now that the ringing of the gun is out of her head and the smell of gunpowder isn’t mixing with the smell of blood to clog her nose, she can get a gist of the situation.

The blind girl has no license to be patching up someone to make sure they don’t bleed to death, but she’s fairly certain Karkat isn’t in any place to be doing it either.

So while she leaves him to call and get things sorted out, she goes to grab her medical kit, bringing it out this time and crouching by John Smith, wounded and bleeding on the floor because another one of his grand schemes fell through. “I would make this painful, but the moment the shock has worn off I’m sure it’s going to hurt enough.”

“Just bandage me and put the cuffs back on,” he spits, his cockiness out the window.

“As you wish,” she giggles, grinning.

Karkat watched as he was on the phone, his eyes on Terezi and avoiding the bright scarlet the best he could. He was being oddly patient with the idiots that work for him, waiting for them to be done with their panicking and their apologizing before telling them they have the guy back in custody - but that they need an ambulance. He doesn’t say why, knowing they’ll work faster if they think it’s him or Terezi that’s hurt.

Seconds after he hangs up, he can hear sirens. Either it’s a coincidence or they can actually work fast when they push themselves.

Maybe he won’t fire them all for letting this happen.

Maybe he should be paying more attention to his girlfriend - the same girlfriend that was just held at knifepoint and had her life threatened but is somehow managing to take this whole thing better than him.

Said girlfriend is done with what she can do just after that, so she stands and smirks down at John, kicking the knife from his hand. He hisses at her. She merely snickers and shrugs, going over to Karkat and wrapping her arms around his torso. She nuzzles him, easily feeling how tense he still is.

“You alright there, Karkat…? It’s all over now, you can stop freaking out…”

She’s so worried about him, and she looks so fine despite everything she just got put through. Everything he put her through by being careless. Muttering something about how she should take care of herself, he pushed her away.

If he had just done his job properly, had just waited to make sure the asshole was in a holding cell, made sure everyone in the station knew the dangers of the guy - none of this would have happened. They would be asleep, happy after their date, thinking of the next date, basking in their victory.

Not back in Terezi’s apartment with more blood everywhere and an ambulance and police.

When had they arrived, anyways?

He doesn’t bother trying to put together the events that had been happening while lost in his mind, deciding to just numbly watch as John Smith - handcuffed to the stretcher - is carried out and to the waiting ambulance.

Hopefully this time he won’t escape.


	18. Chapter 18

Terezi had followed the paramedics out by instruction of one of them when they saw her limping. She would’ve protested, but Karkat seemed to need some time to himself. Maybe when she gets back he’ll be in a better state of mind.

When she gets back, he still smells worked up. It doesn’t seem like he’s moved at all, either. So with a sigh, she goes to start cleaning - taking the medical supplies back to her laundry room, pulling out the carpet cleaner instead, going to her carpet to try getting the blood out. She’ll have to do something about the wall. Is it going to have to be repainted? Can she use typical cleaner on it? She’s never had to clean anything off a wall before.

All she wants is to hug onto Karkat, pull him onto something soft, curl up with his scent around her, and sleep.

“I’m going to help.” His voice snaps her out of her thoughts, just like the sight of her cleaning the blood from her carpet snapped him out of the trance he had been in. “I need something to do.” He wasn’t asking to help; he was stating he is going to. He has to get his mind off everything. That’s what she’s trying to do, right? Distract herself?

Terezi looks up at him, pausing her cleaning. Then she frowns. “Just… Tell me. Are you okay?” She wants to get up and hug him, kiss him, shower him in affection. But he had pushed her away. She isn’t going to toe the line.

How is she still worrying about him? “How can you be so CALM? You could have been killed!” And it would have been his fault. He hates remembering that.

“Because it’s either calm or freaking out,” she slowly responds, not sure how to answer this without setting him off. He seems to be ready to explode no matter what, though. “Nothing happened, Karkat. You’re not hurt. I’m not hurt. He’s going to be getting the death penalty. So why are you still worked up?”

“Just- fucking- just because!” He wasn’t meaning to lash out. He doesn’t want to lash out. Not at her. So he takes a deep breath, closes his eyes, then crouches down beside her. “Let me help clean up the blood,” he mumbles.

She sighs, easily able to see past his calm facade. He’s still worked up. “Why? You could tear up my carpet with how frustrated you are. What’s the matter?”

He grumbles something along the lines of hating being interrogated. “You’re acting like you didn’t just have a fucking KNIFE against your THROAT. And like it WASN’T my fault.”

A scowl tugs her lips down. “What makes you think any of this is your? If anything, it’s both of our faults for being idiots. We had no idea how to deal with a serial killer going into this.”

“How is this NOT my fault?! I could have walked you in! I could have taken an extra five seconds to make sure he was put into a cell properly! It isn’t just that we didn’t know what we were doing, I kept fucking up and he took advantage of each fuck up!” He snatches the towel and starts to rub at the carpet furiously, trying to get his mind off his, well, mind.

Maybe her worry about him tearing up her carpet was a well-founded one.

Terezi slowly reaches over and puts her hand over his, stopping his actions. Her eyes are still on him, managing to track him in the odd blind way her eyes always work. He looks at her, then away when she starts to talk. “The odds were just against us. But I’m fine. I really am. Shaken up and scared, obviously… But fine. What happened today… This whole case… It’s going to be locked away in a dark part of my mind, okay? I’m staying calm because you aren’t. I don’t want to add to this.”

He looks back at her, childish pout on his face. “It’d make me feel a whole fuckton better if you sat here and flipped out with me. At least for a little bit.” Even his words have a childish tone to them. Not quite whiny but definitely pouty.

Even so, he’s being very serious.

She doesn’t have to be able to see him to know that, either, and she’s up against him in the next second, hugging onto his torso and pushing her face into his shoulder. She can be scared. She can let herself be terrified of what she just went through. Karkat’s here to comfort her, and she’s here to comfort Karkat, and they’re going to comfort each other while they low-key freak out over what happened before locking it away in a part of their mind that will never be revisited.

“It was horrible, Karkles,” she mumbles, “I don’t want to remember it… I’m sure a knife to your neck is scary enough when you can see, but when you’re blind? When all you have is the heat of the person holding the knife, the sharp smell of metal, the coldness of the blade on your skin… I couldn’t even smell you through it all.”

As she tilts her head to be at his neck, breathing in his scent, his hand goes to her hair, absently threading through the strands. It’s subconscious at this point, a motion of habit. She tilts her head back just a little, enjoying the feeling of it. It’s the affection she’s been craving, after all.

“I thought I was going to lose you.” He wraps an arm around her, carefully pulling her closer. He wants to hold her against him, so that’s what he does. She’s soft and smells nice.

She smiles a bit, letting her head drop back against his neck. “I don’t think he would’ve killed me. I can’t see how that would’ve worked to his advantage.” Didn’t make it any less terrifying, though. Doesn’t make the cold feeling of a knife on her neck go away, either. “I’m glad you shot him…”

Karkat snorts a bit, his hand resting on the back of her head as he just holds her. “How about we take a few days from this shit? It’ll give someone else enough time to go batshit crazy and kill someone.” He’s just joking, of course, but it’s always a possibility.

Hopefully it doesn’t happen, though.

Terezi seems to share the same kind of sentiment, giggling a little as she replies. “Well hopefully I can just go back to simple missing persons and infidelity claims and things like that. I think it’ll be a while until I’m ready to deal with another killer.” She lets out a little sigh in a puff of air, her smile growing. “But until we really get back to work, I just want to spend some time with my sweet boyfriend.” It still feels weird to refer to him as that, but that’s what they are.

“You should introduce me to him sometime,” he snickers, smiling down at her. She looks so fragile, pressed against him like this. Innocent and harmless, not anything like the psychobitch he had to deal with when she first came raging to his door.

She giggles and plays along with him. “Well then. Sweet boyfriend, meet sweet boyfriend. Dumbass,” she teases, squeezing him lightly. Now that she’s feeling better about everything that’s happened, she decides to ask her question one more time: “Are you okay now? You still haven’t said… You just kind of went on a rant.” She doesn’t want to get back into it though, so she makes no comment on said rant.

Karkat rolls his eyes before resting his face in her hair. “I’m fine. Just fucking dandy. Never been greater.” His voice is muffled, but it’s obvious he’s being grouchy. He doesn’t want to talk about his feelings. Hell, he never wants to. He absolutely hates having to explain to someone why he’s feeling a certain way, especially when it comes to explaining why he feels like a piece of shit.

Which is, admittedly, all the fucking time.

“Don’t lie to me. If you don’t want to talk, just say so. I won’t press. I promise. Instead, I’ll sit here and drown you in affection.” She lifts her head to kiss his cheek several times, forcing her worry back. Obviously her approach isn’t working, so she’ll scrap it and go for another one: trying to comfort him in any way possible.

He catches onto that and smirks a bit, rolling his eyes again at her behavior. “Oh, no,” he drawls, being overly sarcastic, “Anything but that. What’re you trying to do here, Pyrope? I can’t handle too much love and affection at once. You may kill me, and my death’ll be on your hands. You’ll remember the moment you killed me with love, and you’ll have a pain in your heart every time because - obviously - you fucking killed me.”

Terezi giggles, then laughs, her lips on his jaw as she clutches him tighter. “You and your tangents are so adorable! It’s nice to know you’re feeling better though. But it would be even better if you showed some affection back.” She pulls back to smirk at him, knowing that he’s already shown her affection but wanting even more.

She’s allowed to be greedy, right?

“You just want me to contribute to my own slow and painful death, don’t you? You’re sick and twisted! A demonic spawn of hell! A succubus sent to devour my soul!” Despite his words, he was still smirking, and his head dips down to plant a light kiss on her neck.

He has no idea why, but it felt kind of right to do? Maybe? Fuck it. It’s done, and he isn’t sorry about that.

The kiss definitely caught her off guard, and the slight pink on her cheeks shows it. Then she giggles. “My, my, Karkles, giving off conflicting messages is so rude!” She nuzzles his head and hums, smiling happily. “That had felt really nice, by the way,” she mumbles, making sure he knows she appreciated the sudden kiss.

Her saying that made him decide to continue. She said she enjoyed it, right? If she hadn’t, then he probably would’ve stopped. But she said it felt nice, so he’s going to kiss a few more times. Is this going to accomplish anything? Not really, no, but he’s having fun doing it.

Terezi giggles as he continues, her fingers going through his hair slowly. “You’re so interesting… Complaining about me drowning you in affection just to do the same thing to me…” She has no idea what he’s going for, but she’s very happy with how things are currently going.

“Well it’s not like you’re complaining,” he quips back, pausing as he realizes that came out as a stumble of words and not as smooth as he had imagined it in his head. Shit. Hopefully she can’t smell the red on his face.

She doesn’t take his stopping very well, a whine coming out as she nuzzles her face against his. “Why’d you stop…? You were actually letting some sweetness show…” Her fingers slip from his hair, her arms resting on his shoulders.

Taking this to mean she wants him to continue, he traces one of his fingers down her neck slowly, following it with several little kisses down that same line. She’s perfect. How can she be so perfect? It isn’t fair, to either of them. She should have someone who can at least hope to be in her league - not someone with temper issues who doesn’t know what to do with a cute girl in his lap.

The blood just a foot away from them is completely forgotten as they get more absorbed in each other.

Terezi’s mind is just on the shivers his finger and lips caused, and she lets her head fall to the side, giving him more of her neck to love on. For now, she’s still happy with this. Her breathing has gotten softer, slower, soaking in everything he gives her.

Karkat was taking his sweet time, trying to implement everything he’s learned via romance books and movies. So far, it seems to be working. It’s a surprise, considering she just had a sharp blade pressed to where his lips currently are. She trusts him so much, it makes his chest ache. He’s being so gentle, kissing up her neck to her jawline, worried that anything harder than what he’s doing now would wound her.

She just seems so fragile.

“Mmm…” Relaxing more, she shifts her weight so she’s leaning against him more, trusting him with herself. His affections are so sweet and nice, but the fact that she had just recently been in the grip of a serial killer made the moment now all the sweeter.

Karkat got the completely wrong idea of what her sound and leaning on him meant. He thought it meant she was getting bored with what he’s doing. He doesn’t want to bore her. He wants to ease her, take her mind off everything the day brought them. He wants to actually be the ‘sweet boyfriend’ she seems to think he is.

So his lips drop down to her collarbone, lightly nipping a spot.

Terezi gasps, surprised by the nip. Then she giggles, her cheeks coloring as the tingles spread through her. She had almost moaned. She has to be more careful about that. As odd as it seems, she’s worried that moaning may kill the mood they have going. She doesn’t want this to go to sex, not really. What she wants is for them both to just enjoy each other and their intimacy.

Her fingers go back to his hair, running through the softness and letting her nails lightly drag against his scalp. She hasn’t ever had something romantic like this happen before, but this feels right.

He appreciates it quite a bit, honestly surprised by how nice it feels. And now he really knows she’s into it. He’s get reactions out of her, making a mental note every time a gasp slips out when he nips. It’ll hopefully come in handy at some point. If nothing else, her sounds are cute and he wants to remember them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The last chapter is honestly more of just lots of romance after this. The chapter split is honestly shit but this was the best I could manage. If you aren't a fan of anything more than like fluffy stuff, then I suggest not reading the next chapter.
> 
> To all who choose to end their reading here:
> 
> This is the end. Thank you to anyone who stuck around for the years it took me to finish it, and I hope everyone who read enjoyed! I lost interest in this rather quickly, so I apologize for anything that was rushed and didn't flow well. But even though I didn't enjoy this towards the end, this is my biggest work of art yet. The most I have ever written for anything before this was in the 50k range, but this work is well over 60k. I hope the journey was enjoyed.
> 
> (And now, shameless self-promo time.)  
> I hope you all stick around to see what else I create and go try my other Karezi fanfiction on here - Framed. And if you're also into Miraculous Ladybug, I have a fanfiction as well - Personal Lives Exposed.  
> And if I ever happen to publish, I hope you all want to read that as well.


	19. Chapter 19

It’s when a small whimper-like moan - that sounds suspiciously like his name - slides out that he pauses, glancing up at her. Her cheeks are red, and she looks so embarrassed by the sound that just came out. He smirks a bit, pulling his face away from her neck so he could get a good look at her. She’s so pretty, red-faced and embarrassed and enjoying herself.

Fuck pretty, she’s gorgeous.

Now to make her a little more embarrassed.

“Sounds like the great Private Investigator Terezi Pyrope has something to say. Go ahead, take your time. I’ve got all night.” Maybe he’s being a little too dickish to her, but he doesn’t care. She’s being so cute, he just has to taunt her a little.

Terezi pouts and tugs his hair lightly in annoyance, only blushing more. He totally heard her try to not moan his name. “I-It’s nothing, don’t worry about it.” While she highly doubts that’s going to work, what else was she supposed to say? ‘Please keep doing that, it feels so nice’? Hell no, Pyropes don’t beg.

As much as he isn’t surprised by her stubbornness, he’s going to be even more stubborn and continue to mess with her. So rather than pry her verbally, he goes back to kissing and nipping her skin, making sure to miss the more sensitive spots.

At the very least, she’s going to have to say ‘please’.

She sticks to being stubborn, but a whine does come out. He’s being an ass and purposefully avoiding the special spots. They’re going to be butting heads on this one, and someone is going to have to cave eventually. The way it’s looking, it may have to be her.

“What’s wrong, Pyrope? Something the matter? You can tell me anything, you know.” Karkat’s smirking, having easily caught her whine and deciding to use it to his advantage. Then an idea comes to mind: if he can’t make her crack by depriving her, maybe he can just overload her to the point where she can’t hold back a moan?

Having her say ‘please’ would be cute, but having her actually moan would be just as cute. And they’re both a victory for him.

Deciding to go with that idea, he latches onto one of her more sensitive spots, nibbling and kissing but being careful to not leave a mark. He isn’t going to move until she breaks, but he’ll at least be courteous.

Terezi gives in fairly quickly, deciding it isn’t worth fighting. She’s enjoying herself, isn’t it only fair that Karkat know it? So she moans his name, giggling just after. Her face is a good red shade at this point, but she pushes past her embarrassment, nuzzling her face into his hair as she moves her arms to hug onto him. She had been partially in his lap before, but now she scoots herself to definitely be sitting in his lap, comfortable and warm and happy.

Her suddenly giving up like that had come out of nowhere for him. Karkat was stunned as she giggled and moved to be completely in his lap, staring at her with wide eyes. Then he softens up and kisses the spots softly, letting one of his fingers trace down her spine. He wants to see if he can make her shiver again. 

And shiver she does. Her back arches a bit, caught off guard, and she breathes out another soft moan.

He’s made her moan twice now; it’s time to make him moan, too.

Her head drops down to his shoulder, and she wastes no time in kissing and nipping at his neck, trying to find his sweet spots like he found hers. Her fingers trace patterns on his back to make him shiver like she did, mostly making little hearts.

“Wait- what the fuck-“ Karkat hadn’t been expecting her to go to his neck like that, and his surprised words are cut off by a low noise - his own moan. He isn’t immediately putty like she had become, but he’s certainly softening up.

Those hearts on his back are really fucking cute, it’s impossible for anyone to not soften up when they feel that. Fuck, she’s so adorable.

Terezi is very happy with how quickly he caved, lightly sucking on the skin. Not long enough to leave a mark - she hopes - but long enough to give him a feel for just how good she can make him feel. She’s having a good time with this, too. It’s fun. Very fun. What he’ll do as payback is only a small worry in the back of her mind; she’s sure that’ll be fun as well.

This is now a competition on a whole other level.

A competition that Karkat is very determined to win, cute blind girl wringing moans out of him or not. He has no idea how it came to this, but he’s strangely okay with this.

“Hehehe, is Mr. Sheriff enjoying himself?” Terezi smirks and pulls away from his neck, her hands coming around to rest on his chest. She lightly tugs on his shirt, wanting it out of her way so she can love on his collarbone like he had loved on hers. If it means he has to get shirtless to do it… Well, oh well. He’ll be much warmer that way, too, without the clothing in her way of her favorite heat source.

Karkat’s teeth are in his bottom lip as he tries to not moan from her just playing with his shirt. Instead, he focus his energy elsewhere: on a rant. “If you’re gonna take my shirt off, just fucking do it already. Don’t tug on it like some needy child trying to get their parent’s attention. Guess what, kid? You’re old enough, do it on your fucking own. Just- warn me before you do it. Your apartment’s fucking freezing and I need some time to mentally prepare myself for the icebox you live in.”

That had been a lot harder to do than he thought.

Terezi tilts her head at him through his rant, immediately kissing him once he’s done. It’s a soft kiss, a sweet one, trying to gauge whether he really is okay with getting his shirt taken off. Plus, she kind of wanted to kiss him. His rants typically make her want to shut him up, and what better way to do that than to kiss him? Her fingers slide down his chest, sliding up under his shirt, her cold hands pressing against his torso.

The kiss is nice. Very nice. Karkat was just about to really relax into it when he suddenly felt icicles on his torso and fuck that shit, abort this plan. His hands are immediately at hers, prying her icy death grip off him as his head jerks back.

“Holy fuck, you and your ice fingers are going to be the literal death of me, Pyrope.” He’s trying to rage, he really is, but the sweetness of her kiss is a hard thing to overcome when he isn’t even that angry.

Annoyed? Yes. Actually pissed? Not at all.

His words merely make her giggle, and she pecks his lips. “I guess you’ll just die happy, huh? You know, we can always go under a blanket or something. Seriously. I don’t want you to get sick. I’d rather spend our off time doing paperwork and going on dates than having to do all the paperwork myself while taking care of my sick man.” She doesn’t want it to sound like she’s trying to get them naked under the covers. That isn’t what she wants here.

“Fuck that, I’ll tough it out. I’m no pansy, the cold can’t do shit to me.” He leans in to kiss her jawline, as if that proves a point. He lets go of her hands, trusting she won’t put them on his bare torso again, so he can hug her waist.

Terezi giggles some more, humming as his lips are on her again. “Just tell me if you want to go somewhere else.” Her fingers go to his back again, resuming the hearts.

“I will,” he mumbles, his kisses going to her lips. He pulls her closer, one of his hands trailing up her back to hold her head. His lips stay there, happy with the warmth and softness of her own lips. She tastes the best here, too.

She keeps the kisses going, eventually mumbling, “I’m glad we partnered up,” between them. If they hadn’t, they wouldn’t be here right now. So much would have been different. Her mind trails to how she likely would be dead, and she has to push it away. She isn’t going to think of that. Not right now. Right now, her mind is on Karkat Vantas, the sweetest boyfriend ever.

Karkat agrees, but his lips are too busy with hers for him to want to bother with verbally saying it. Instead, he squeezes her gently, getting a little possessive. The moment they turn in the papers, their partnership is over. They won’t part ways or anything, right? So far, the only reason they’ve been together is because of this case.

She wouldn’t suddenly stop talking to him, right? She’s called him her boyfriend. They’re a thing. She wouldn’t start to ignore him out of nowhere.

“Hey Karkat?” Her voice pulls him out of his thoughts, and she kisses him particularly sweetly, her tracing stopping so she can instead clutch his shirt.

Her kiss is so sweet, but he’s so worried about what she wants to say. “Y-Yeah…?”

“Don’t ever leave me,” she mumbles, her head dropping down so her face is in his neck. Even though she had been blushing before, she doesn’t want him to see just how embarrassed those four words had made her.

Karkat’s left staring down at her, then he sighs and kisses the top of her head. “I wasn’t planning on it.” He strokes her back gently, resting his head on top of hers. “You’re fucking stuck with me, Pyrope.”

His words make her perk up, and she’s easily grinning as she sits up straight. “Done! That means you’re stuck with me, too, Vantas. No take backs!” She hugs him tightly, the force of her suddenly flinging the majority of her weight onto him causing him to fall back.

He catches himself with his elbows, then chuckles. He was worried for absolutely no reason. He was just being an idiot, as always, but he’s glad for it this time. A rare smile curls his lips up just a bit, and he smiles up at her. “I’d have to be insane to want to go back on something so good.”

“Good,” she giggles, leaning down to rest herself on him, getting more comfortable. Her head rests on his chest like a pillow, and she hugs onto his torso, staying there for a few seconds. Then she props her chin up, blindly staring up at him. “So… Are you going to stay the night?” Her lips drop into a little pout, and she hopes he gets what she’s trying to say.

She doesn’t want to stay alone tonight.

Karkat catches what she’s saying easily, not being that much of an idiot. “Even if I wanted to leave, I don’t think there’d be a point in trying. You’d make me stay.” He spies his old foe - the stray strand of hair - and easily brushes it behind her ear. It’s odd to think that just a few days ago he was too much of a pansy to even do that much.

“Seems like cops can be smart when they want to be,” she teases, nuzzling his hand gently.

He snorts at her, his smile only growing a bit more. “Well after all, we ARE trained to not freak the fuck out over a situation like this. There’s a whole chapter in our ‘how to be a cop’ manual over having an insane blind girl on you.” He strokes her cheek with his thumb, letting her head rest in his palm.

Terezi snickers at the blatant lie, knowing full well he’s messing with her just like she messed with him. But this is nice. This is good. This is the two of them coping with everything that happened and not thinking about what could have happened.

“What’s it like? Doing everything blind?” The question came suddenly, before Karkat could deem this a bad question. As if to make up for it, his fingers comb through her hair, gently detangling anything. What she had done to his hair felt nice, so he’s trying to mimic that for her.

He mimics it well, too, because she’s thoroughly enjoying the feeling. “I don’t even remember that I’m different from everyone else most of the time… I have my own way of seeing, like every other blind person. I use tastes and smells to paint a picture for me. I’ve done this for years… I’ve done this for more of my life than I’ve seen. It’s normal for me.”

“Learn something new every day…” He stares at her, in awe of everything that is Terezi Pyrope. She’s beautiful, she’s skilled, she’s been through shit and copes with everything better than anyone else he knows - except maybe Kanaya.

Terezi smiles at him, then turns her head so she can kiss his palm before hopping off him. They can deal with the carpet later. She’ll get some of the police to come deal with this for her. Forensics and all of that should know what to do, right?

“Come on, Karkles. Let’s get to somewhere more comfortable. We should probably get some sleep, you know? We have lots of paperwork to do in the morning.”

Karkat eyes her wearily, not too sure if she’s plotting something or not. Deciding to try and ask anyways, he slowly does: “Are we actually going to sleep? Just give me a warning here so I know what to expect.”

She snickers and shrugs. “Who knows? We may.” After some cuddling and maybe more kisses. But she’s still set on not doing the sex tonight. Who wants to remember their first time with someone as being after a life-threatening experience? “Now come on, you gonna take my hand or what?”

With a snort, he does, pulling himself up. “Can’t just give me a straight answer, huh?”

“Nope!” With that, she tugs him along to her bedroom, grip on his hand tight. There’s no point in him trying to escape her grasp.

Knowing that she’s going to be sleeping in her bed is a weird feeling. It’s been a while. Last night she was with him, the previous night she spent on her couch… Stupid evil couch. She’s looking forward to sleeping in her own bed again, especially since she’ll have Karkat to sleep with.

A whole other train of thought was going through Karkat’s head: is this really Terezi bringing him to sleep or is this her sly way of restarting whatever competition they had going?

Terezi’s completely unaware of the thoughts in his head, kissing his cheek before letting go of his hand to go find herself some pajamas. “Want anything to wear?” She pulls out her pair of fluffy pink pajama pants, smirking at him.

“Fuck no,” he huffs, deciding to just go under the covers. He kicks his shoes off and gets comfortable under the sheets, deciding he can sleep in his day clothes. It’s fine.

She snickers and shrugs, turning her back and changing right there. She heard the sheets move, and she knows Karkat wouldn’t watch. At least, she trusts him not to. Then she’s under the blankets as well, nudging against his arms as she demands to be held.

Karkat grumbles only a little before wrapping an arm around her and pulling her against him. She felt cold. Maybe that’s just because he’s been under the sheets heating them up. He hadn’t seen anything or any of her as she changed, making himself comfortable in her bed.

“You’re cold,” he mumbles, as if it’s something that needs to be said.

Terezi giggles a bit. “I know you’ll keep me warm,” she hums, nuzzling her face into his neck so she can press a soft kiss there. “Good heater. Best boyfriend.” She’s getting tired, the warmth of their small space and the softness of her bed letting the exhaustion really set in.

He smiles a bit, finding her even more adorable when she’s sleepy. He can’t see her, but he doesn’t need to. Not to know how cute she is. His fingers absently go through her hair, stroking slowly as he drifts to sleep.

She’s asleep right after him, and their competition is forgotten for another time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the end. Thank you to anyone who stuck around for the years it took me to finish it, and I hope everyone who read enjoyed! I lost interest in this rather quickly, so I apologize for anything that was rushed and didn't flow well. But even though I didn't enjoy this towards the end, this is my biggest work of art yet. The most I have ever written for anything before this was in the 50k range, but this work is well over 60k. I hope the journey was enjoyed.
> 
> (And now, shameless self-promo time.)  
> I hope you all stick around to see what else I create and go try my other Karezi fanfiction on here - Framed. And if you're also into Miraculous Ladybug, I have a fanfiction as well - Personal Lives Exposed.  
> And if I ever happen to publish, I hope you all want to read that as well.


End file.
